You really do love to write, I love the eloquence in this and I fully understand where your heart is here - when times get tough you have have to knuckle down and face the challenge - that might be taking a long hard look at your finances coming in and out and working out what you really need to spend on and saving where you can - or working bloody long hard 15 hour days to keep your business running (I'm not salty, honestly)
The shocking debacle that has been the UK's Coronavirus response will still be playing out long after I pass away, and even my children. Furlough that has been widely abused, the taxes increase to recover that debt alone will go on further then any of us will live to see. Mass unemployment from bankrupt Hospitality business, forced lockdown might have saved a few lives, but the number of lives ruined by it is exponential - how are they going to handle the masses of homeless caused by people entering the housing ladder with an expected income that suddenly stopped.
I think we discussed at the Hive UK meet up how I had seen long standing customers, and friends of 20+ years shut down and give up business because of the continued lockdowns - it makes me sad to think all the work they have done has gone to waste, and how our city centre high streets continue to fall into a derelict ruin.
As a business I have been very lucky, we were very well placed to ride the digital wave as people shifted to ordering online because they were told to not go outside - it's been hard work, a massive increase in effort for less reward - but sometimes you have to face the struggle face on to survive.
I hope you are all doing well up North, once we get out of this lockdown I'd love to pop up and have another chat over a tasty beverage or two.
Not all salty... ahem!
Yup the debt will be a multi generational one of that we wholeheartedly agree. Your point about the high-street is a particularly important one because the dereliction was already taking hold up and down the country long before Covid was ever imagined, the fallout is nothing short of heart-breaking and catastrophic to see.
I feel massively for those who worked long hours in jobs, saved, planned, invested time and money, took the leap of faith to start businesses and got them cashflow positive and past the danger zone to have all of that progress wiped out by bad management/governance of the business sector by inept politicians who don't have any clue about business save for creaming taxes off the industriousness and entrepreneurial spirit of others.
But as you stated, sometimes taking an inventory of where you are at in life is the first step to shielding yourself against a system that was never really set up to protect you in the first place. I am incredibly happy you were well placed to make it through this farcical situation, albeit with a Herculean effort at times and I believe I recall you being the only active staff member there at times long in to the night!
It's fair to say, I think, that you assessed what it was going to take early on and met the cost boldly. Kudos to you my friend!
My lady is recovering from the
new plagueCovid, right now and we are optimistic and grateful that we have remained relatively unscathed by the situation on the whole due to being deemed as essential workers early on.That sounds absolutely fantastic and that gives me great reason to look forward and remain optimistic. I absolutely loved my time in Halifax and after a couple of years of joking about popping through for coffee with c0ff33a, the reality was vastly better than I had imagined. In a year that was on the whole pretty devoid of highlights, that was one that rescued the year somewhat. 😎
My best wishes to you and your family, I hope you all get over the COVID one way or another and come out non the worse. It’s not unusual for me to be the only one grafting, between snow days and staff personal issues there have been many days this year even I have been the only one keeping the orders shipping and ensuring the customers paying for a next day service get that whatever.
I really hope it’s going to be a long, hot lockdown free summer lol