FOX Business’ Kelly Saberi reports from Moon’s Sandwich Shop in Chicago, Illinois, discussing how small businesses are struggling with inflation.
Just a few blocks from the Democratic National Convention sits 90-year-old Moon’s Sandwich Shop, a local business that survived the Great Depression and Covid-19 and is now struggling to keep its doors open.
FOX Business’ Kelly Saberi visited the Generations Store and spoke with owner Jim Radek about the recent economic problems the business has faced.
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Jim Radek, owner of Moon’s Sandwich Shop, left next to a picture of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Radek spoke with FOX Business’ Kelly Saberi about how rising food costs continue to weigh on his business. (FoxNews / FoxNews)
“The old saying was 4 to 1. If it costs you what it costs you, raise the price fourfold. So, just for argument’s sake, if corned beef costs me $10 a pound and I sell a sandwich for half a pound, that’s $5. The sandwich should really cost $20, but it doesn’t,” owner Jim Radek, who has owned the store for more than 40 years, told Saberi on Thursday.
Radek further explained that the area where his shop is located was considered a “food desert” until recently, when a grocery store opened across the street. Moon’s Sandwich Shop was a major food supplier to area residents, but rising costs have put his business in unprecedented trouble.
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Out of concern for the welfare of the community, Radek was hesitant to raise food prices in his store, although he admitted that it was difficult to keep prices low when the cost of goods was constantly fluctuating.
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Rising wages are also putting a strain on Radek’s business. The minimum wage in Chicago is currently $16.20 an hour. In 2023, it will be $15.80.
Radek invited politicians who were at the United Center just blocks away to come and talk to his customers and enjoy a sandwich.
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