What does "feel the chill" mean? Is it a metaphor?

Native speaker’s answer
Rebecca
Here it is a metaphor, yes! "Feel the chill" means that they feel some kind of fear or anxiety because of something. It also means that there is a depressing influence due to something. The same way one feels the cold, one feels the "chill" of the other things and becomes aware of its influence. Ex: The company felt the chill when half of their sales dropped. Ex: Our store is feeling the chill since another bakery opened up across the street.