Local business owners have spoken out about their struggles and how they are adapting to the coronavirus pandemic as a second national lockdown begins on Thursday.
Non essential shops, leisure and entertainment will close from Thursday, November 5 until at least December 2. Pubs, bars and restaurants must also close, except for takeaway and collections — and the government has issued comprehensive guidance on the lockdown rules.
Businesses are continuing to adapt, including online offerings and delivery services, while supermarkets are busy with panic buyers ahead of November 5.
What bars & restaurants are doing
Ronnie Byrne, Duty Manager at the Nosey Parker, told The Lincolnite:”Obviously the situation is far from ideal, but, like everybody, we’re just going to try and take it in our stride.
“We are opening a second dedicated delivery service with a range of meals that are different from our regular menu, to give people more choice, and to give our team the hours they deserve.
“As for the industry, it could be devastating. The government’s ban on takeaway alcohol this time around is preposterous, and could really damage the amazing independent bars in the city.
“Even though we’re all run by different people and different companies, we’re one family, and we never want to see other businesses suffer.”
The Strait and Narrow delivered beer and cocktails during lockdown.
Jez Nash, who owns the Strait & Narrow and The Rogue Saint, said: “2020 has been an unprecedented year for hospitality that’s for sure. It’s been hard to navigate the COVID landscape but this is how the world is right now. However hard it is for us there are people who have lost, sacrificed and faced much harder obstacles than us and still are doing.
“Our goal is to keep staff and customers safe and make sure that when we can reopen that we bring the same high standards of drinks and a safe enviroment like we have done for the last few months – in fact the last eight years.
“We’re waiting on clarification from local and national government to get the green light to continue with the massively popular Strait Crates delivery service that we’ve been running since March for beer and cocktail delivery, locally and nationally. Just because it’s lockdown again doesn’t mean we’re going to leave our customers without the best drinks.”
David Nejrup, Operations Manager at Home, Craft and Curiosity Shop, said: “While the news of the second national lock down is yet another challenge to our beleaguered sector, we understand the rational behind it.
“We would like to thank our amazing team and guests, who have continued to support us at this difficult time. We hope the lockdown will have the desired effect the government wishes to achieve and hopefully we will be allowed to commence trading in December.”
Kine owner Jason Lord-Castle. | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
Kine will be offering a takeaway service from next weekend (November 14) and owner Jason Lord-Castle said: “Obviously it’s quite annoying that we’re going into lockdown again, but it’s a necessity.
“We are in a lucky position that we’ve been really popular and will still be here once all this is over. It is quite disappointing as we were getting to a point where we were doing exceedingly well and seeing lots of new faces, so for this to happen again is a bit crushing.
“My staff are all smiling and have been fantastic and we’re confident we’ll be back. It is going to be difficult for everybody but it’s a case of use small independents sticking together and helping each other out where we can.”
Luis Abruneiras, son of the owner of Ole Ole Tapas Bar & Restaurant, said: “We will have to close during lockdown, but will continue to do contactless collection as well as delivery, and are joining Uber Eats today (November 2).
“We have had friends in the industry that have been struggling and it is a sad time. I think so many people are uncertain on what is happening. It is a difficult time for us and our family in Spain too, but we’ll stick together.
“We are a family business and we are always going to be here. We are confident we can return in the future and look forward to seeing customers again.”
Hairdressers and beauty salons
Matt Smith, co-owner at The Junxion hair salon, said: “It was sort of expected with how things have been going. It’s not good for any small business, but it’s got to be done or we’ll be in a worse situation.
“Financially it is going to be difficult to everyone and all small businesses, but we have put the year down as making sure we’re surviving for next year and making sure bills are paid, and are confident we’ll be back stronger.”
Laura Fryer runs The Relaxation Studio in Tattershall Thorpe near Lincoln from her home, where Gemini aesthetics and Oak Tree Hills (Reflexology) are also based.
Laura has been running her business for 10 years and will offer online Zoom tutorials during lockdown.
She said: “I’m gutted as we’ve been trying to work to accrue the money back from the previous lockdown and were starting to get back to some kind of normal then this happened.
“I was shut for five months before but was able to send out some NHS care boxes which I will try and do again. It’s going to be very difficult and once we get back a lot of clients are elderly and shielding, and some may lose their jobs so may not have the income to spend on these sort of treatments.
“I just hope that we can reopen by December as the Christmas trade is our busiest time. I am worried more for the fact that the more time people are doing their treatments at home that they may not come back to salons, but I think I’ll be able to bounce back.”
Gyms & leisure
| Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
Tamsin Kilby, co-owner of Energie Lincoln City in the Cornhill, said: “It is a massive kick in the teeth, especially as only around 0.34 per 100,000 cases are from gym visits, which is very low.
“We had such a positive response and membership gain since reopening in July. We are uniquely placed to offer an uplift for people, things that they need even more now.
“We are putting on a wide range of online programmes such as daily classes and Facebook live sessions on areas including nutrition, and new members can still join.
“There will also be challenges via our app which members have access to and we will engage with them to see how else we can help them.”
Kristen Ingraham-Morgan, owner at LN CrossFit on Earlsfield Close, said: “Obviously it is not totally unexpected. We had contingency plans in place as we expected something like this may happen again and we are focusing on the mental health and wellbeing of our members.
“We learnt a lot from the last lockdown, but the financial support won’t be as good as it was the first time so the other concern is minding the pennies and making sure business will be viable.
“I doubt we’ll be open again before Christmas, but we made it through the last one and no doubt will make it through this lockdown too.”
Coaches will check in regularly with members and the gym will also lend out equipment so workouts can be done at home. Zoom classes will be run during lockdown, as well as nutritional challenges.
Spotted an error? Please notify us by selecting that text and pressing Ctrl+Enter.
The Lincolnite welcomes your views. All comments are reactively-moderated and must obey the house rules. Please stay on topic and be respectful of other readers.
The Lincolnite welcomes your views. All comments are reactively-moderated and must obey the house rules. Please stay on topic and be respectful of other readers.
Lincoln Castle is playing host to a farewell event for the 30 sculptures on this year’s imp trail, offering you one last chance to see them all before they are auctioned for charity.
The imps arrived at Lincoln Castle on Tuesday, September 14 after organisers of the trail Lincoln Business Improvement Group made the decision to take them off the streets of Lincoln.
This was after a spate of vandalism which saw multiple sculptures damaged and in need of repair, so Lincoln BIG made the decision to prevent any more of these incidents.
You can see them lined up at the castle. | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
| Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
The move signals the beginning of the end of the Lincoln Imp Trail, which despite its difficulties with vandalism and damage, has been a huge success in the city.
| Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
The sculptures can be viewed at Lincoln Castle between 10am and 5pm until September 22, before they are auctioned on October 1, Lincolnshire Day, at Lincoln Cathedral.
This auction will be in aid of St Barnabas Hospice, the official charity partner of the Lincoln Imp Trail. Tickets cost £15 and are on sale here.
See them while you still can! | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
| Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
Vandalism and damage on Lincoln Imp Trail
The Post Impressionist imp, designed by Susan Webber and sponsored by Ruddocks, was found with scuff marks and damage at its spot near the Royal William IV pub on Brayford Pool on Wednesday, September 8. It’s believed that a delivery lorry bumped into the sculpture, causing the damage.
The first imp damaged was the Community Imp on Guildhall Street, which was vandalised on July 21 by 20-year-old Bradley Pennell from Scunthorpe, after a drunken night out. He pleaded guilty in court and has been ordered to pay damages.
It was all change for the imp trail, as the Footie Imp was taken away for repair, the Community Imp returned and the temporary red imp was moved elsewhere!
The next imp to be removed from the trail was the Running Imp at the junction for St Mary’s Street with the pedestrianised High Street, but organisers Lincoln BIG said this was just for some TLC. That was replaced by “Goldie the Imp”.
Visit Lincoln will undergo a rebrand to incorporate the whole of Greater Lincolnshire, expanding the organisation’s geographical footprint.
Visit Lincoln’s new name will be Destination Lincolnshire and will be business focused, to build an engaged tourism, hospitality, leisure and retail community across Greater Lincolnshire.
The award-winning destination management organisation formed in 2012 and has supported a visitor economy growth of 30% to the city of Lincoln since it formed.
The transition to Destination Lincolnshire will be led by businesses, with representation from local authorities involved in the Towns Fund initiative as well as other schemes in Lincolnshire.
There will still be a commitment to Lincoln, as a continued investment in Visit Lincoln allows it to remain an internationally recognised brand.
All marketing activity including the website and social media will remain as Visit Lincoln, along with consumer facing brands such as Taste Lincolnshire and Cycle Lincolnshire.
The organisation’s evolution has been backed by councils across Lincolnshire, and has also developed a partnership with the University of Lincoln’s tourism research observatory which champions research and a data-led approach in the tourism sector.
Speaking about Destination Lincolnshire, Kate Ellis, strategic director for major developments at City of Lincoln Council, said: “Over the last 10 years Visit Lincoln has played a critical role in transforming the city’s tourism offer and international profile.
“Given the impact of COVID we need a much more collaborative approach to rebuilding the visitor economy led by the private sector. By working together we’ll be championing the recovery of the sector much more effectively then if we do it alone.”
Charlotte Goy is the Visit Lincoln CEO. | Photo: VL CIC
Charlotte Goy, chief executive at Visit Lincoln, explains: “Destination Lincolnshire will focus on building an engaged and resilient visitor economy across Greater Lincolnshire.
“Tourism, incorporating retail, leisure and hospitality has been most affected by the pandemic; and Destination Lincolnshire brings forward a new structure which is business led and across a wider geographical footprint.
“Our growth is supported by businesses and operator within the sector who want to see a joined-up approach, and together we’ll champion new packages, digital innovation and collaborations that have not been possible before.
“Destination Lincolnshire will also deliver against the Government’s key visitor economy priorities which include sustainability, skills, inclusive tourism and the levelling up agenda which include the multi-million-pound Town Deals across Lincolnshire.
“We’re at the beginning of this journey, and we will be asking people to help us shape Destination Lincolnshire into an organisation that can support all levels of the visitor economy, from sole traders right the way through to the local enterprise partnership.”
Lincolnshire County Council hopes to get a court order to remove an abandoned trailer of rotting rubbish in Lincoln – if it can’t find the deceased owner’s relatives.
The trailer, described by the county council, as a “wooden caravan-like structure” has been parked on Ripon Street for two years or longer according to a local resident.
The county council stuck a notice letter to the trailer in March this year, stating it was an obstruction to the highway and needs removing within 28 days, which has still not been done. However, commenters on The Lincolnite’s story earlier this week flagged up that the trailer’s owner had died, including one person who said she’d “reported it to the council after the family cleared his flat out”.
The Lincolnite contacted the county council to ask for clarification on the situation and a spokesperson said: “We’re still looking for the current owner’s family and alongside that we’re hoping to secure a court order to allow us to move it, should no living relatives be found.”
Karen Cassar, assistant director for highways at LCC, previously said the council was trying to find out who now owns the trailer to avoid local taxpayers having to pick up the bill for moving it.
She said: “We appreciate this is a nuisance for local residents. We want to make sure as much of your money as possible goes into maintaining and improving our roads.”
The council has not set an exact deadline in its search for the owner’s family, but once the court order comes through a more accurate timeline will be known.
The trailer is full of rotting rubbish. | Photo: Submitted
A notice from the county council was stuck to the trailer stating that it needs removed within 28 days, but this was back in March 2021. | Photo: Submitted
This comes after a concerned Lincoln resident contacted The Lincolnite calling on the county council to take action, saying he has never seen the area so filthy in more than half a century.
And the trailer full of rotting rubbish isn’t the only issue on Ripon Street, as there also appears to be a problem with fly-tipping and overgrown weeds, which City of Lincoln Council says it tackling.
The weed spraying programme is ongoing with Ripon Street scheduled to be sprayed in the next two weeks.
The city council added that Ripon Street and that general area is ‘subject to a significant amount of fly tipping, which is why we try to check and clear all streets around there at least weekly’.
Whatsapp
