Is Inflation Affecting Your Startup?

By Shahtaj Khan

What Is Inflation?

The pace of price growth over a specific period is referred to as inflation. Inflation is frequently measured broadly, such as the general rise in prices or the rise in the cost of living in a country.

How Does It Affect Us?

When the rate of inflation increases and prices of everything starts increasing by this then it doesn’t matter whether you’re an entrepreneur or not it will affect you because an increase in inflation disturbs our daily life. Because it changes our cost of living and can also lower our purchasing power. But today we will discuss how inflation is affecting your startup.

When the rate of inflation increases then it becomes more difficult to save money and it directly affects us in carrying out our business. When your purchasing power becomes lower, it directly causes our businesses to sell less and it results in earning low profits. An increase in inflation can put your startup at high risk of losing finances and also when you don’t earn much then your startup loses the ability to grow which mostly results in the shutting down of the startup.

But not all startups and businesses have been hurt by the rise in inflation because Inflation can have a positive impact on a firm despite all the gloomy predictions. Knowing how to capitalize on impending inflationary times’ warning indications can help you save time and money, and avoid the worker disruption that frequently follows erratic economic periods. Inflation has different effects on different types of businesses. Price increases won’t affect demand as much as they would for an optional good when customers depend on a company and are less likely to shop around due to choice or circumstance. As a result, numerous industries, including grocery stores, healthcare organizations, daycare centers, and tax specialists, are seen as recession-proof. The purchase of discretionary products, however, is more likely to be delayed until the following month or longer.

Generally speaking, companies with a devoted customer base are less impacted by inflation. Customers who are devoted to a certain brand are unlikely to modify their tastes, particularly if the competitor sets prices that are proportionally influenced by inflation. In general, the more loyal a consumer is to a company’s brand or product, the more reliably the company can bank on them to remain through the pressure of rising pricing. But heed the warning: Every consumer has a threshold beyond which they will no longer tolerate a product or service. Furthermore, brand switching will increase if supply chains are affected to the extent that some items are no longer available, as has been the case in the previous two years.

Disadvantages of Inflation for Startups

Here are the few most important disadvantages startups face because of rises in prices,

1. Lack of sales
2. Decrease in profits
3. Increase in losses
4. Lack of chances for growth
5. Shortage of finished goods in the market
6. Higher interest rates
7. Low purchasing power
8. The rising cost of raw materials and rents
9. The supply chain becomes disrupted
10. Higher wages and an increase in inventory costs
    

Inflation not only affects our startups but also causes a major change in consumer behavior as well such as a decrease in demands for unnecessary products and an increase in inflation mostly increases unemployment which makes it difficult for a person to fulfill their basic needs.

What To Do In This Situation?

1. Raise the prices of your goods concerning the rising rate of inflation and maintain them to make your startup stable to survive in difficult times.
   
   
2. Restructure your workforce and try to maintain your supply chain without any disruptions.
   
   
3. Fix your interest rate with banks or suppliers so it won’t affect your startup even if the inflation rate rises.
   
   
4. Reevaluate your work structure.
   
   
5. Redesign your business model and prepare it so that a rise in inflation doesn’t affect your startup as much as you expect.
   
   
6. Diversify your suppliers and don’t rely on one supplier because it can create problems for you.
   

Summing up, inflation is a global issue and we can’t change the fact that we have to live with it, worry and uncertainty frequently follows periods of inflation. A business, however, that is prepared can start taking the necessary actions in advance and be better equipped to not only survive such turbulent times but also emerge stronger, more effective, and more productive than they were before. A firm’s ability to meet the challenges of a shifting market head-on and leave its rivals playing catch-up should climb along with prices. So to protect our startup and business we should have to come up with a strong strategic plan and management so your startup will not suffer losses and slowly and gradually will start to grow.