You pay $4 for a Gatorade because of how expensive the labor (store staff) and rent are. San Francisco would be much cheaper if it didn’t cost 5 grand a month to rent a tiny store front.
This. My barber rents about 600 square feet in Boston near a major college, and that is $8000/mo. And that’s a good deal considering both the area and that he’s always had so much business he’s forever booked solid.
Folks, actually go look into how much commercial retail (not office space!) real estate costs in the nice, busy parts of your area. It’s an eye opener. Food service is even more. Then NYC (especially!), SF, DC, Seattle and Boston can be positively withering.