Fox Business' Kelly Saberi reports from Moon's Sandwich Shop in Chicago, Illinois, to discuss how small businesses are coping with inflation.
A few blocks from the Democratic National Convention is Moon's Sandwich Shop, a 90-year-old local business that weathered the Great Depression and is now facing the COVID-19 crisis, struggling to keep its doors open.
FOX Business' Kelly Saberi went to the store and spoke with owner Jim Radek about the recent economic issues the company has faced.
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Jim Radick, owner of Moon's Sandwich Shop, is pictured left next to a photo of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Radick spoke with FOX Business's Kelly Saberi about how rising food costs continue to hurt his business. (Fox News / Fox News)
“The old saying was 4 to 1. When it costs you what it costs you, you quadruple the price. So if it costs me, for the sake of argument, $10 a pound of corned beef and I sell a half pound sandwich — that’s $5. The sandwich should actually be $20, but it’s not,” owner Jim Radick, who has owned the store for more than 40 years, told Saberi on Thursday.
Radek went on to explain that the neighborhood where his shop is located was considered a “candy store” until recently, when a grocery store came across the street. Moon’s Sandwich Shop was a major food supplier to the area, but rising costs have made his business untenable.
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With the welfare of the community in mind, Radek hesitated to raise the prices of food items in his store. However, Radek admitted that it is difficult to keep prices low when the cost of goods continues to fluctuate.
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Rising wages are also putting pressure on Radek’s business. Chicago’s minimum wage is currently $16.20 an hour, up from $15.80 in 2023.
Radek invited politicians at the United Center, a few blocks away, to join him for a chat with his customers and a sandwich.
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