“The government have only given us £1,000 since April, which doesn’t even cover one months rent” – The future of Salford’s little walkden cafe

Hug in a Mug cafe in Walkden is one of a number of businesses in Salford that are at threat of not surviving post-pandemic.

Following the announcement from Matt Hancock yesterday, Salford and Greater Manchester are remaining in Tier 3 for the foreseeable, which is the highest of the Coronavirus restrictions in the UK.

This means that cafe’s like Hug in a Mug cannot welcome customers back into the building just yet.

Karen Gardiner is the owner and chef at the cafe: “We have been offering deals for meals we can deliver, trying anything we can to see what can help pay the rent.”

She added: ” The impact on our business has been extremely dramatic, all the bills have to be paid and the government have only given us £1000 since April which doesn’t cover one months rent.”

According to The Guardian, a new study from King’s Business School has shown that nearly two thirds of business owners feel that their businesses might not survive the pressures from the Coronavirus, and more than half predicted that they will run out of money within the next 12 months.

Karen said: “It looks like we can only rely on takeaways, so all of our Christmas dinners have been cancelled. We brought in a Father Christmas to bring in a little money, plus everyone that has been helping out has been doing it for free.”

We’ve added another date to our Socially distant Santa’s Grotto as it’s been so popular.. Monday 21st but only a few spaces left.. we’ve also had more journalist round interviewing the owners and taking pictures of the Grotto…. if your interested in a Santa space please phone pic.twitter.com/ino315KLs0

— hug in a Mug walkden (@huginamugcrafts) December 16, 2020

“It seems to me that the bigger the company, the more help they can get. As you can imagine things are a bit daunting at the moment. As always, we will keep positive and hopefully re-open in the new year.”

“In the new year we are set to see more ‘closed for business’ signs than ever before. A record number of shops, restaurants and pubs have closed on UK high streets. One way you can show your support is by shopping local this Christmas, every little helps.