Long term plans are required
to prevent vital industry missing out on essential support
The Textile Services
Association (TSA) is highlighting the concerns of its members regarding the
rise in energy prices and the potentially disastrous effects they could have on
the UK’s hospitality industry over the coming year. These issues have been
highlighted by the results of two surveys the TSA conducted on the views of its
members in August and September 2022 and demonstrate the need for continued
action on top of the six month emergency price cap for businesses announced in
the emergency budget.
The first survey took place in
August and was focussed on the post Covid recovery in business. The results showed signs of optimism but also
indicated some ongoing issues. It indicated that 83% of commercial laundries
have returned to or increased their pre-pandemic turnover, and 79% anticipated
turnover to be on a similar trajectory in 2023. However, 79% reported issues
with supply chains, in particular difficulties with equipment, spare parts and
linen.
The second survey was taken in
early September, before the energy price cap was announced. It aimed to take a
snapshot of the concerns of the laundry regarding the increasing costs of
energy. 85% of responding laundries service a range of essential and
influential sectors, including healthcare, education, hospitality and critical
manufacturing among others. The majority of respondents have already seen
energy prices increasing anywhere from 200 to 500% since 2019, and many were
anticipating further increases between 300-600% for 2023.
“While the government’s
announcement of a six month price cap will undoubtedly help laundries
throughout the winter months, the price increases that have already taken place
are having a huge impact on many of them,” says David Stevens, CEO of TSA. “We
feel that further steps are necessary to prevent real problems when the current
scheme ends.”
The laundry industry is vital
to the UK’s hospitality sector but, as it is a hidden part of the supply chain,
it has often been overlooked for government support during the crises of the
last few years. “The government needs to take a big picture view of these
situations,” says Stevens. “The laundry industry needs to be included as one of
the sectors that receives further support once the six months is up. We cannot wait
half a year to find out what is happening - we need a clear long term support
strategy now, to allow us to plan for the future.”
“We are encouraged by the
signs that MPs are increasingly aware of the importance of laundries to the UK
economy as a whole,” says David. “We will continue to lobby on behalf of our
members, and the whole commercial laundry industry, but we need to see hard evidence that the
government has also understood the message"
The TSA is the trade
association for the textile care services industry. The TSA
represents commercial laundry and textile rental businesses. Membership
ranges from family-run operations through to large, multi-national
companies. Visit www.tsa-uk.org
for more information.
Press Enquiries:
The Publicity Works: 01263 761000; teaboy@publicityworks.biz
David Stevens, CEO, Textile Services Association,
T: +44 (0)20 3151 5600 M:
+44 (0)7966 531954 E:
david.stevens@tsa-uk.org
Get the latest news on the TSA from tsa-uk.org or from
the TSA
press office at publicityworks.biz