As the cost of living continues to soar, a number of hospitality businesses have been forced to close.
Whether it is rising energy prices, increases in the cost of goods from suppliers, or heightened labour costs - many venues across the region are struggling.
Speaking to Belfast Live earlier this week, Hospitality Ulster's Colin Neill said the current situation is "worse than Covid" for business owners. He warned the situation may worsen throughout the summer and into winter months, as more members of the public continue to struggle financially and as businesses are battered by rising costs.
Read more: Rising costs "worse than Covid" as more NI restaurants close
Headlines have been dominated with the impact this has had for hospitality, with a number of venues being forced to close.
We've put together a list of businesses that have closed or announced their closure due to the cost of living crisis, to highlight how this is affecting the industry.
Rosie's Cookstown
The popular Co Tyrone bakery closed its doors in June as its owner said it became impossible to deal with rising costs.
Owner, local baker Rosie Doyle, ceased trading as she said she could no longer justify passing rising prices on to consumers. The price of ingredients, electricity and rent had all increased significantly in recent months for the bakery, while the return of business rates following a two year holiday was too much for Rosie to absorb.
Speaking to Belfast Live, the business owner said many small businesses could follow in the months ahead as the cost of living and doing business rises further.
“I don’t think I’ll be the first nor the last and that’s probably the scary part about it,” she said.
“Since January I have noticed the price of everything just going up and up. My rent was due to go up in April, my electric bill just kept going up and for last month it was £950 alone. The rising costs would cripple anybody and it really is scary."
Bia Rebel
Bia Rebel on Belfast's Ormeau Road was also forced to close at the end of June. The ramen restaurant started out at St George's Market in 2017, before moving to the Big Fish and finally to its Ormeau spot.
Outlining that a number of reasons were behind their closure, they said a "recent letter from the gas company announcing a 42 percent increase was the final straw."
In a post on social media, the team behind Bia Rebel said: "As we predicted at the start of lockdown, lots of small independent businesses would be devastated by pandemic countermeasures. The loss in trade that we all suffered put us in an impossible position re: meeting these insane price hikes.
"We are sad to have to shut our doors, our customers were so good to us over the years and we will miss you! And -- sad to have to say this -- the current economic and government environment here feels like it is almost designed to kill off small independent businesses like ours, and the many others who are struggling right now.
"Food businesses have notoriously tight-margins. There is no way mom and pop shops can absorb 42 percent increases in heat bills -- as well as higher taxes and food costs. And we certainly don't expect our customers to foot the increases."
Coulter Restaurant
The restaurant in Ballynahinch announced their final service would be on Saturday, July 2 after a "long and hard few months."
Cristina and Stevie Higginson, the couple behind The Square Bistro in Lisburn, first opened the Dromore Street restaurant in 2021.
In a statement shared on social media, the team said they were closing due to issues around staff recruitment and rising costs. The statement said: "After a long and hard few months, we have decided to close Coulter Restaurant. Our last service will be Saturday, 2nd July.
"As a result of issues recruiting staff and rising costs, our business will be unable to continue operating for the foreseeable future. We are very grateful for our phenomenal staff and loyal customers who helped us create this fantastic little restaurant."
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