Gary Keery was not happy when C4 reporter Symeon Brown questioned him on the prices in his café.
A Belfast born owner of new London café that sells 120 varieties of cereal and 13 types of milk has hit back at Channel 4 reporter Symeon Brown, who questioned him on the prices of his stock.
“Do you think it’s affordable for the area?” asked Brown.
“I think it’s cheap for the area, really,” responded Keery.
Brown continued: “Do you think local people will be able to afford £3.20 cereal?”
Keery: “If they’re poor, probably not then. Can we stop this interview because I don’t like the questions you’re asking me?”
Following the broadcast of this segment, Keery posted the following open letter on Facebook.
“You obviously don’t understand business if you think I don’t have to put a mark-up on what I sell. It may be the poorest borough in London, but let’s not forget Canary Wharf is also in the borough – but I am the one to blame, eh?” said Keery.
He continued: “I am from one of the most deprived areas in Belfast, so me and my family know all about poverty but haven’t had to blame the small business owners in the area for it. I have been taught a great work ethic and have made it this far without blaming small business owners trying to better themselves and make a future for themselves.
“I still have to pay over-the-top rent for my premises and pay the 12 staff I have employed, so I either have to make a profit or I will be out of business. Maybe if I charged more than £3 for a coffee and dodged all the taxes in this country like some cafes – the reporters would leave me alone, would they?
“If you want someone to solve the poverty crises in London, I don’t think I’m the man to do that as I am too busy trying to cure Ebola and get Kim Kardashian to keep her clothes on,” the open letter added. “Also you didn’t even pay me for the cereal, which you could so easily afford with your overpriced River Island suit, so I will send you a bill for the extortionate £3.20.”
The letter ended: “Yours Sincerely, Gary Keery (the worst person in the world).”
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