Gas prices are surging, and small business owners in LA are already feeling it

At Las Siete Regiones de Oaxaca in Pico Union, owner Lidia Young hears from customers that gas prices are playing a major factor in whether they can eat at her restaurant.

“It’s becoming very difficult because I have customers who come from far away, and with the increase in gas prices, they’re telling me they won’t be coming here anymore,” Young said, who has operated the business for about 30 years.

“Yesterday, some customers told us it would cost them more to drive here than to pay for the food,” she said Monday. 

It’s a reality that many small business owners are grappling with, as gas prices react to the war in Iran.

Gas prices surged across the country over the last week, with the average price spiking 51 cents, according to data compiled by GasBuddy. In L.A. County, the average price stood at $5.25 per gallon as of Monday, a dollar more than a month ago, AAA reported, and experts said to expect more volatility as the United State’s and Israel’s deadly war with Iran continues.

Between attacks on oil facilities, slowing of traffic in a key Middle East shipping route and general uncertainty, the price of oil jumped to over $100 per barrel this weekend for the first time since the pandemic

Some states could see prices go up another 20 to 50 cents this week, Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said in a statement on Monday.

“While the situation remains highly fluid, consumers are already beginning to feel the impact as energy markets adjust to this sudden escalation,” he said.

By late Monday, the price of oil dropped back down to under $90 after President Donald Trump told CBS News the war is “very complete, pretty much.”

Trump later added he might remove sanctions on oil-producing countries — potentially Russia, though he did not specify — to keep oil prices from rising again. He also claimed the war in Iran was having a limited effect on gas in the U.S., in spite of prices jumping at pumps across the country.

“We have so much oil,” he said at a press conference Monday night. “We have Venezuela now as our new partner.”

At Un Solo Sol Kitchen, owner Carlos Ortez drives from Boyle Heights to about seven different suppliers every week for produce and ingredients for his vegan dishes. 

On Tuesday, he plans to drive to Glendale to purchase Armenian flatbread, known as lavash, as well as vegetables at Canto Food Company in downtown L.A. and grains at Whole Foods.

At Las Siete Regiones de Oaxaca in Pico Union, owner Lidia Young hears from customers that gas prices are playing a major factor in whether they can eat at her restaurant.

“Last week it wasn’t as bad as I expect it to be this time,” Ortez said on Monday. Even though Ortez drives an electric vehicle, he worries about the hit to his electric bill.

In Pico Union, Isabel Treminio has been selling cleaning supplies, snacks and toys at her small market Variedades Todito for about 25 years. She’s also worried about what the increase in gas prices means for her business.

“Yes, it affects us when gas prices go up because when gas goes up, everything else goes up too,” she said.

“Since we’re a small business, we can’t afford to keep our prices lower. Customers come in and tell us that everything is more expensive, and they’re not buying as much. Right now, it’s getting worse than in other times.”

At Las Siete Regiones de Oaxaca in Pico Union, owner Lidia Young hears from customers that gas prices are playing a major factor in whether they can eat at her restaurant.

Mariachis are also feeling the pinch at the pump as they travel for their gigs.

“We continue to charge the same while the costs for everything else rises,” said Joel Soto, a musician at Mariachi Plaza in Boyle Heights. 

For Teodoro Cuevas, another mariachi, the increase in gas prices impacts him because he’s retired and on a fixed income. The spike in gas prices coincides with a lack of work, Cuevas said. 

“You feel everything much more when you’re on [fixed] income,” he said. 

The bigger hit to small businesses may come when higher fuel prices affect imported ingredients, like at Las Siete Regiones de Oaxaca in Pico Union. Young, the restaurant owner, relies on many ingredients outside of a simple car ride.

“I also bring certain ingredients from Oaxaca, like quesillo, tlayudas, mole and chapulines,” Young said. “A plane flies them from Oaxaca to Tijuana, and then someone brings them to me by truck. With the higher gas prices, it will definitely cost me more.”

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