A bar that has been closed for nearly seven months, a guest house that has adapted quickly, and a new 24-hour fitness club in Mell Square are among the Solihull businesses poised for some crucial weeks.
As the lockdown wore off, we spoke to the owners about how they have dealt with Covid, how their plans as restrictions have been relaxed, and what they think the future holds.
“These are scary times, but I’m very optimistic right now.”
The Achill Guest House opened in Knowle in 1999. With the constant flow of business from the NEC, the airport, and people attending weddings, there was even no need to advertise.
Owner Mary Liszewski said, “We’re not a tourist destination – although it’s a beautiful village and we have these lovely canal walks – we had to rely on business travel.
“”[It was this] that turns in floods of people. “
But she said everything changed when the coronavirus crisis broke out; Even in those fleeting times when restrictions allowed her to open the usual stream of guests, she just wasn’t there.
Mary Liszewski and Ellen Darlison from Achill Guest House who were recently recognized by Hotels.com
(Image: Achill Guest House)
“”[I knew] If we didn’t do anything, we’d go under, “she said.
“They have to adapt and if we hadn’t adapted we would be folded by now.”
A spa service that had previously been a sideline suddenly became a stepping stone, while an area outside was opened up to guests – complete with heating and cabins.
It has proven incredibly popular with villagers over the past few weeks, especially considering that many of the pubs and restaurants nearby had chosen not to open for outdoor trading.
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This means that local residents catching up after months of lockdown have decided to check out the venue on Hampton Road.
The on-site support gave Mary new hope for the future after admitting that the picture had looked particularly bleak six months ago and the thought of the sale had crossed her mind.
“It’s scary when something you’ve done for so many years and taken for granted is taken away from you and you have the thought that it might never come back,” she said.
“That’s why we decided to shift the focus away from the B&B.”
The Knowle business has branched out and caters to those who wanted to sit outside – allowed again since the last easing on April 12th.
(Image: Achill Guest House)
She admitted that there was still uncertainty about how long it would be before the big events that were once her elixir of life would happen on a regular basis, and whether a new shift towards home work could have lasting effects on the industry.
“It won’t be exactly the same,” she said.
“These are scary times, but I’m very optimistic right now …
“We had a nice little shop before and it could be a year before we come back [now] We can open and do other things too. “
“Hopefully it will be a nice summer”
Platform three opened its doors to punters back in 2018 and proved extremely popular. The team behind it tried to create a venue that they would like to visit themselves.
But in the spring of last year, it was in uncertainty among thousands of family businesses in the region.
The Warwick Road-based wine bar and restaurant struggled to respond when it became clear the country was headed for a lockdown.
“It was really, really troubling and worrying,” said manager Colette King, who switched careers at the NHS to start the company.
Colette King (right) and daughter Eleanor in the Olton Wine Bar and Restaurant, which opened three years ago.
(Image: Platform Three)
“We’re a pretty intimate team and we had to tell people we’re closing without knowing what support would be there at that point.
“And everyone looked at us like we had inside information that we didn’t have … I found it really difficult.”
On Wednesday (May 19), the Olton venue will welcome customers again for the first time since early November. In Solihull, there has been an incredible amount of indoor food on the menu since Bonfire Night.
“It’s going to be a new world, a different world,” said the 55-year-old.
“These next 12 months will be challenging for many companies.”
Colette, however, is confident people will return to the main drag, and said Platform Three was fortunate enough to have received approval for a new outdoor area – which will help with new ways of working.
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“Hopefully it will be a nice summer!”
Aside from the UK’s often unpredictable weather, another unknown is how long the Covid restrictions will last.
The hope had been that most measures, such as social distancing, would be lifted from June – although concerns about the Indian variant lately had raised doubts about the schedule.
“I think it’s about risk analysis – if risk matters to the public, there is no choice for me,” said Colette.
Though she admitted that following rules would make it harder for companies like her to “recover”, for example given the associated limits on numbers.
And she also argued that the authorities had to be stricter with supermarkets, which they believed were allowed to be negligent when the hospitality industry was banned from opening.
The venue said it had been overwhelmed by the support from the local community.
(Image: Platform Three)
“That was annoying and irritating,” she said.
Going forward, she said that both councils and government would have to give business leeway if they got a foothold, warning that a swift return to “business as usual” could be a hammer blow for some struggling businesses.
“We had good government support, it wasn’t distributed as quickly as it might if I’m very critical.”
And Colette said “heartwarming” offers of help and supportive messages from local residents also provided a real boost during a turbulent 14 month period.
Sympathetic emails and letters had been received, while some even asked if they could buy shares.
“I have to say the support from the local community has been amazing … it has been absolutely wonderful.”
“Hopefully it will be a distant memory at this time of year next year!”
While some neighborhood businesses are reopening after a lengthy shutdown, other customers will be welcoming customers for the first time this month.
The 24-hour fitness club Anytime Fitness has taken over the former Energie Fitness home in Mell Square, which closed during the first national lockdown.
Now the finishing touches are being given to the premises and the shutters are scheduled to open on May 27th.
While gyms were allowed to reopen from last month, this week’s easing of restrictions will allow the return of group exercise classes – which are considered a big piece of the puzzle for owner Shaquille Pabani.
The gyms were allowed to reopen last month, but there will be more activity this week.
(Image: SWNS)
The 26-year-old entrepreneur said a lot of work has been done to make sure the company is “100 percent Covid Compliant”.
He is asked if the pandemic has made juggling the usual pressures to start a new business even more acute.
“It was difficult, I’m not going to lie to you,” he said.
“But we feel up to the challenge.”
The original hope had been to welcome customers at the end of last year, even though the second wave of Covid had deviated from the initial schedule.
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While Shaquille said the intent was always to have a “fairly open” design, the layout was tweaked a bit to meet the latest government guidelines.
The hope is that ministers can achieve their current goal of lifting remaining restrictions in five weeks – though he said the center was planning a number of scenarios.
“We hope government guidelines for June 21 remain in place, but we learned last year not to hold our breath.
“We absolutely make contingency plans … we hope we can get back to normal, but we are prepared for the worst.”
The Solihull-based owner, who has a grooming background, hopes the fitness facilities will quickly recover from the turmoil of the past few months.
While there is great uncertainty about the future of Main Street, there is also a feeling that gyms and their coworkers can weather the storm well – as few have the budget to properly equip their own homes.
“There is now confidence that there is a way forward and hopefully this time next year … we won’t believe we’ve been constrained for so long and it’s a distant memory!”
Support local urges the council
The Solihull Council is keen to see people support local businesses and businesses when the neighborhood returns to normal.
Authorities must pull a tight rope between promoting an economic recovery and not triggering a recurrence of the virus.
Opinions are inevitably divided about the speed of unlocking.
- Group exercise classes, adult indoor sports and swimming lessons resumed today (Monday 17th May) at the North Solihull Sports Center and Tudor Grange Leisure Center.
- People from Chelmsley Wood and The Core can once again be seen in the Solihull Connect walk-through centers.
- As reported last week, The Core Theater is reopening for performances. A “season of the film” begins on May 19th with a screening of the personal story of David Copperfield.
Some argue that restrictions that persist for many months would destroy sectors that are already up to date.
Although others insist that lessons must be learned from last year, the government has been criticized for trying to reopen too quickly – even as signs of a second wave surfaced.
Cllr Karen Grinsell, vice chairwoman of the council and cabinet member for Social Care and Adult Health, said people needed to “move slowly” but was also keen to support the businesses on their doorstep.
“We want to keep our local businesses, but they have to be financially viable, so we need people to help them.”
