Nightclub owner David Whittall says if the night-time industry cannot open, it will require urgent financial support from the government
And wedding planners said the continuation of some restrictions meant couples were likely to defer their weddings again."The sold-out events that we had booked in - that's what was going to get us through because we would have made revenue, we would have had profit, we would have been able to pay our bills. Now we don't have anything," Mr Whittall says.
"Licensees are losing money because they are having to hire extra staff members to cope with restrictions like table service and social distancing." "The furlough scheme and support for the self-employed is in place until September and eligible businesses will continue to benefit from business rates relief of 75% over the year, VAT cuts and the Recovery Loan Scheme."Event and wedding planning studio founder Matthew Shaw is concerned about how his industry and suppliers will cope with continued restrictions
Earlier this year, his marquee supplier went under. That means he will have to try to forge relationships with new suppliers, while hoping the existing ones are still coping and are resilient when clients pull the plug or decide to postpone their events.
Mr Marsden recently had his worst day of trading since he started the business, with takings of just £96. "People haven't aggressively chased debt, landlords have let people off with rent, business rates holidays, things like that. They're now coming to the surface."Caterers for the festival and events industry say the delays in relaxing Covid restrictions is "devastating" for the sector
Latest research from Live, the trade body for the UK live events sector, suggests the industry faces losses of more than £500m as at least 5,000 shows will be cancelled. It is a terrible three-way balancing act - a race not just between the vaccine and the variant, but also viability of thousands of businesses. A cost-benefit analysis without many benefits.
Hospitality is gone IMO. Been destroyed. Ridiculously Unfairly as well. Easier, and cheaper, to have house parties now or takeaway at home. Which most people will continue to do moving forward.