feature

Back to Business

Maureen Moody talks to local small business people to find out how they have been faring during the pandemic We all remember the shock when the government ruled that non-essential businesses had to close at the start of lockdown. Everyone had to alter their routines, but life proved especially hard for many small business concerns.

Cut & Curl hairdressers in Melbourn, owned by Rachel Apperley, for instance was closed for 15 weeks. I asked her about the much-publicised government help for businesses. “It was quite easy to understand,” she told me, “but the late notice and confirmation of guidance for most businesses on re-opening was frustrating. I found I was checking the HMRC website, watching the daily update and checking the South Cambs business site every day for updates or news.” But Rachel found the furlough and self-employed grant system easy to use and received the money within days. “The business grant I received was just as easy as they sent a letter out to invite to apply online, and that money was quickly paid.” She adds; “I cannot complain at the help the government has given us. It was a huge help and I think it was made as easy as it could be.”

Times have been much tougher for John Bradley, Managing Director of Melbourn-based company Bitech Limited. Bitech helps employers assess their training needs, and sources specialised training and training grants for them. “I have had no paying work since March,” he told me. “And being a limited company, I only take expenses, not a salary, so I could not get the furlough payment.” Frustratingly he has also had no advice from the government or any industry body or trade association, and for a company trading since 1995 this has been quite a blow. Unfortunately John’s story illustrates the fact that when the economy slows, the first thing that employers cut is staff training.

The other thing that happens in an economic slowdown is mass redundancies, and Melbourn resident Phil Stewart was one of those affected. He took voluntary redundancy from EasyJet in July following Covid’s impact on the aviation industry, and joined his life-long friend Ben Morris in his accountancy practice, Rosaris. Their clients range from construction-related industries to clothing, marketing, social media and residential care homes. Luckily, even in difficult times, accountancy practices are still needed. Says Phil, “The timing was perfect. Ben was looking to grow Rosaris and we are both qualified FCA Chartered Accountants with wide experience in industry and practice.”

But Ben Morris agrees with John at Bitech about the vulnerability of small limited companies. “The government have obviously offered a lot of support to a large part of the population during recent months, although advice on various schemes and policies was given relatively late on. But there are still people who have received no support from the government, particularly very small limited companies, and this has received scant reporting in the media even though there will be hundreds of thousands affected.” He adds that there are also businesses who have been able to undertake work during the lockdown period but whose pipeline will run dry now that government support is being rescinded. “While the economy is recovering there is a danger these businesses may be cut adrift,” he warns

Father and son, David and Matt Baxter, who run Royston-based Format Computer Systems, supply IT Services for a range of companies. They were, of course, unable to do any on-site visits during lockdown, but they were able to continue this service remotely. I asked David how their customers have been faring and the knock-on effect on Format’s business. “We have a mix of customers,” he explained. “But the majority are printing companies, and during the pandemic most of these customers continued to trade because of the need for labels to put on goods, such as food and drink etc. For instance, a pharmaceutical company that prints labels for medication, a home shopping delivery firm, and a flower delivery business whose trade tripled during lockdown. Less fortunate was a hospitality sector client which had to stop trading temporarily, but luckily, they had a good August due to the Eat Out to Help Out campaign.”

Interestingly, though, it was the surge in working from home that gave Format a huge boost during the first month of lockdown, as they facilitated the supply and setting up of computers plus networking and fast broadband in employees’ homes. Like John at Bitech, and Ben and Phil at Rosaris however, Matt and David have received no advice or help from the government, trade bodies or any other organisation.

How has the pandemic affected high street businesses with fixed overheads? Rabeya Miah, owner of Home Corner in Royston, only started her business in mid-2018 so she was in a vulnerable position. “Closure affected me greatly because this is my main income,” she explained. “But the Job Retention scheme allowed me to furlough myself until the 15th June and the business rates grant helped me stay afloat and pay overheads and suppliers.”

A quite different experience awaited Caroline Smith, owner of Homemade at The Barn. When lockdown started she had only just taken over the Grade II listed 400-year-old barn in Bassingbourn with its stock of unique hand-made and vintage items. “It came as a

shock initially, and as the whole situation was new to everyone I wasn’t sure what I could and couldn’t do as far as carrying on was concerned,” she explained. But those non-trading weeks were the ideal opportunity for Caroline to reassess and re-merchandise the stock and then find new local artisans and implement new product ranges. “Without that lockdown period it would have taken a lot longer to transition and I would have possibly had to shut down for a period of time to complete some of the major changes anyway,” she concludes.

Preparing to re-open retail businesses was far from simple, especially for a close-contact service like hairdressing. Rachel at Cut & Curl describes what she had to do; “I cleared the salon out, removing items like magazines, hand towels, toys etc. Then I deep cleaned through and steam cleaned the floors and tiles. I did a risk assessment and put in place new procedures and precautions, and made space for social distancing. Then I bought in PPE supplies, signs, bins, paper hand towels and loads of hand sanitizer and plenty of disinfectant, wipes and bleach.” Having done all that, Rachel had to reorganise her client appointments to allow time for cleaning after each client. And it was important to place a special emphasis on ensuring that more vulnerable clients would feel extra safe in the new circumstances.

Rabeya at Home Corner faced a similar challenge, especially as the premises is small. “My business is primarily furniture for the whole house, and flooring including carpet and laminate. I also sell lamps, clocks, cushions, throws and rugs, so I had to do vigorous cleaning of all my display items. I followed the government guidelines for re-opening,” she adds, “installing a screen at the till, hand sanitation points, signs and notices.” In true entrepreneurial fashion, Rabeya also took advantage of a niche in the market and started selling locally-made washable face masks, which have sold extremely well.

Ben and Phil at Rosaris have also taken an entrepreneurial approach to this year’s challenges. Ben explains; “The first signs of the pandemic’s economic impact hit earlier than lockdown, and from early on we were getting reports of how Covid was affecting business confidence and causing cancellations. So we spent a lot of time explaining to clients how the government solutions would work for them even though much of the detail wasn’t available, and we carried out all pandemic- related work for no extra costs.” As a result many of their clients acknowledged that the company had gone above and beyond. The other move they made was to become a member of the Melbourn Business Association, giving them an opportunity to get to know other local business people and businesses, and hopefully pick up new clients along the way.

So how do things look for the immediate and long term future for these crucial small businesses? John at Bitech has mixed feelings. “There are several projects I’m working on that should generate income next year,” he says. “However, I’m expecting no revenue for the short term foreseeable future.” What he really needs, he told me, is the sort of government help with debt that other businesses have received.

David at Format echoes this view. “Business looks good for the future, although we are expecting a slight downturn as some customers will be reducing in size. And another lockdown would affect us further in the long term if some of our customers don’t survive.”

Caroline at Homemade @The Barn found that trade in the first couple of weeks of being allowed to re-open was slow as people were still a little unsure about going out. “However, one of the benefits of trading in a huge barn is there is lots of space, so gradually people realised they could pop in and walk around and feel comfortable. So business in the last couple of months has been great, we are seeing more and more new and returning customers, plus lots of enquiries from new artisans keen to join us.”

Rabeya echoes this upbeat perspective but remains cautious. She explains, “Since opening, business has been good because lots of people are happy to support local, however it’s also been tough because shopping habits have changed and lots of people have become more confident shopping online.”

Trade for Cut & Curl has been busy since opening thanks to Rachel’s loyal clients. “There was a mixture of feelings from clients about coming in and starting to get out and about,” she reported. “Some were scared and nervous, some a bit down and others quite calm and happy, but fortunately all are taking it seriously and are doing as they should, even if they hate wearing a mask. Most are now re-booked through until Christmas, so fingers crossed for no second wave locally then business should keep going okay.”

And that is what we hope for all our local businesses. It’s a very varied picture out there, and as for all of us, a lot of uncertainty ahead. But one thing is sure, local firms are a valuable resource and they and the talented, hardworking people who own them deserve all the support and encouragement we can give. Bitech Limited www.bitechltd.com 07584 510 820 Cut & Curl, The Campkins, Station Road, Melbourn 01763 261 797 Format Computer Services www.formatcs.co.uk Free Phone 0808 120 3883 Home Corner, The High Street, Royston www.thehomecorner.shop 01763 247 933 Homemade at The Barn, Old North Road, Kneesworth www.homemadeatthebarn.co.uk 07801 236 061 Rosaris 07968 110 582 www.rosaris.co.uk