A family who have poured their lives into a “labour of love” coffee shop say they are devastated to have to close due to rising costs of overheads. Melanie Brooks has run Rosie and Izzy’s coffee shop - named after her two dogs - in Cibi Walk in Abergavenny since August 2020, but said continuous lockdowns during the pandemic followed by rising costs over the last year has left her little choice but to say goodbye to her dream venture.
Melanie said when she took over the premises she had thought she would be able to afford the high monthly rent, but good footfall at weekends throughout the year has not been enough to cope with costs of produce and bills. That Melanie and her family can fall on such hard times despite being in the heart of Wales’ most foodie town shows no small business is immune to the well-documented challenges that face traders nationally.
In October the annual rate of inflation reached 11.1% - a 41-year record. And although inflation has now decreased moderately, many have still been left reeling from ever-increasing cost of living. A war in Ukraine coupled with a post-Covid hangover has caused the UK's economy to spiral and energy companies have reacted by hiking charges. Arguably no-one has been hit harder than small businesses, with many being forced to close.
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Sat in her colourful shop brimming with flowers, quirky crockery and ornaments in the thoroughfare of Cibi Walk, mother-of-four Melanie tells of the pain of having to pack up here while she is constantly interrupted by well-wishing customers. One customer makes a donation and another tells her it’s “been the most beautiful coffee shop I have ever been in”.
While Melanie’s daughter Mikaela has set up a fundraiser to try and revive their business elsewhere, Melanie said so many people have offered her money in the shop that she has felt awkward, but added that she’s very grateful for the support.
“You build a relationship and a community in a coffee shop, you make so many friends. People walk past and see how nice the place looks and think we must be making money - but we’re certainly not. We’ve made it like this by using things from home and having a lot of generous offers from people who love us being here. We have been blessed to be here - we feel as though we’ve had a giant cuddle around us.
“I had a customer come in here yesterday and give me some tulips. That’s what it’s like here - it’s a lovely town. What it’s shown me is the public support I’ve got, which makes me hopeful. We’re walking away from a community, some of whom use the coffee shop every day.”
Tracey Cruickshank, 52, is one of those regulars and says it has been her “lifeline”. “I’m a veteran and I suffer with my mental health,” she said. “I sit there and have cried my eyes out sometimes and they’ve always come over and talked to me. I’m there every day and it’s become my lifeline and a little community gathering. It’s such a unique place and she’s put her heart and soul into it. I can’t understand why it’s gone the way it has because to me it’s better to have someone there earning half the money than to have nothing at all.”
Roseanne O'Connell, 29, who has worked at the coffee shop for more than a year, added: "It's such a shame. We were all very close. A lot of people came in to see us for a chat rather than for a coffee really. We had about 30 customers who were really regular and pretty much came every day. I do worry for them. It has been more than just a business. It's going to be horrible getting used to not being there anymore."
Melanie said she has loved her time in Cibi Walk but the good will of her loyal customers hasn’t been enough to pay off arrears. “We have cracking Saturdays, in half term we’re full every day, but generally for five days a week we don’t do enough business and we can’t run a coffee bar like that. I’m not alone in that, you speak to so many high street shops and it’s a national issue.”
Recalling the last two and a half years since she opened, she continued: “We opened in August 2020 thinking we were getting back to normal after the first lockdown, and then we were hit with firebreak lockdowns and then a big lockdown in December which lasted into the following spring. On the day of the December lockdown announcement I’d ordered a £600 delivery. Throughout the lockdowns I had to pay full rent including the utilities which we paid for basically with the grant given by the council. Personally I had no money.
“From that moment we’ve been playing catch-up the whole time. I’ve used savings that my mum gave me. And then we had the fuel crisis and now cost of food which has affected footfall again. People argue we’re back to an economic state before Covid but that’s not the case.”
Melanie said she is proud of what her family has achieved at Cibi Walk. “We’ve spent hours on end making this place what it is. It’s been a labour of love. My kids have grown so much while we’ve been here and they all work here. We’ve tried really hard to keep this going at a huge personal cost.
"I just want to thank every single customer, especially the regulars, because they made my life richer. It's really tough."
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