A pedestrian walks past shops, temporarily closed-down due to Covid-19 restrictions, as Britain enters a national lockdown in London January 5, 2021. — AFP pic
“A lot of yoga is quite hands on — I would have thought previously that you would need to be in a physical space,” Ward added, saying she had been “quite surprised” at how well it worked holding classes via the video platform Zoom. There are 5.9 million small businesses in Britain — defined as those with fewer than 50 employees — which together employ 13 million people, according to government estimates.
Despite an overall fall of 7.1 per cent in consumer spending in 2020, its data showed some bright spots — including a boom in online commerce and a boost for independent food shops as Britons stay home and shop locally.Professionals from therapists to tutors and fitness instructors have taken their business online as lockdowns forced an end to most in-person mixing, with some finding they are drawing new customers as a result.