Rugby indie shuts as footfall drops

Gallachers of Rugby closed its doors for the final time in June.

Debbie and Russell Gallacher launched the business on Regent Street, Rugby, in 2018. Debbie says the decision was made due to “low footfall, low sales but still high bills”.

The couple are currently working on a local delivery service for subscribers, which they will operate from their home.

• The Ramsbottom branch of Grape to Grain ceased trading last month after five years. A post on its social media said: “The usual combination of rising costs and dwindling sales in a faltering Rammy market mean we simply cannot keep our doors open.” Tom Sneesby continues to run the Prestwich shop.

• Bottle London, established in Highgate in north London in 2020, has closed. Rebecca Smithson, who launched the “coffee, wine and beer destination” with two colleagues, is now focusing on TwentySix, the event bar business she started 18 months before Bottle London opened.

The swine of wine

When it comes to shop names, wine merchants have proved to be a creative and pun-loving bunch. Dave Cushley, owner of the newly opened Feral Pig Wines (see page 6) has a good, but slightly self-deprecating explanation for the name of his new business. “It follows the notion that a feral pig was once a domesticated pig that has gone wild,” he says. “A feral pig is known to eat and destroy everything it lays its eyes on – including a vineyard. The idea that feral pigs could be wine pests resonated with me. I’d like to think the name is somewhat of a self-portrait.”