Features

Finance: Price of doing business

Adam Bernstein explains how to best deal with the business rates applied to optical practices

Business rates are very unpopular. A tax on occupation, they hurt the traditional ‘bricks and mortar’ organisation more compared to those that use an online presence to operate out of low-cost sheds in the middle of nowhere. 

The tax has been a problem for the profession for some time. Back in 2013, Optician wrote: ‘Soaring business rates are hampering progress for high street optical practices as they look to negotiate lower rents.’

Four years later, the publication commented: ‘High street rents are already outrageous and, on top of that, an increase in business rates is not at all welcome. The government tells us that most small and medium-sized enterprises will not be affected but this is definitely a concern.’  

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