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Bodega owners feeling economic pinch

By Matthew Sweeney | msweeney@am-ny.com

4:28 PM EDT, May 18, 2008

At Speedy Deli and Grocery on Ninth Avenue and 30th Street, Willy George is getting squeezed between rising expenses and increasingly budget-conscious customers. In just a few months, business has dropped by 30 percent, he said.

Even when George raises prices a little, he hears complaints. About four months ago he raised the price of a bacon-egg-and-cheese sandwich -- a staple deli breakfast for many New Yorkers -- from $2.50 to $3.

"They say why is this so high?" said George, 49. "Now, they'll say give me an egg and cheese or eggs on a roll."

Throughout the city, mom-and-pop corner delis and bodegas -- the quintessential small business throughout the five boroughs -- have been on the front lines dealing with the economic pinch.

"If I make money on some things, I lose money on something else," George said.

When gasoline prices rose, George's suppliers added a $1.50 to $3 fuel charge to each of his delivery bills.

When he was forced to pay $20 instead of $14 for a box of bananas, he began charging his customers 40 cents a banana instead of 25 cents.

When the price of wheat, corn, and soybeans dramatically increased, doubling and, in some cases, tripling, George had to pay more for milk, eggs, bread, meat.

Recently, he said, one customer balked and then walked out after learning that the price of a package of Pepperidge Farm cookies went from $2.99 to $3.39.

"I can't close the store," George said. "We have four or five people working here."

George said he makes it a point to keep the offer of a free soda with a sandwich despite an increase in soft drink prices.

"If I stop it, I lose customers," he said.