Coventry cafe owner's sadness as she shuts after 21 years due to rising costs

[dutchman]

Tina Sheehy was devastated to have to shut her much-loved café on Holbrook Lane



A Coventry café owner took the decision to close her beloved eatery as costs soared. Tina and Sams Café shut for good on Saturday, February 18.

Tina Sheehy ran her business for over two decades but was left unable to afford the rising costs which continue to hit thousands of businesses throughout the country. Customers were left saddened with many hoping the local businesswoman can find another site nearby.

Tina said she has been left devastated at the closure of her eatery which she had built from the ground up. After working at the Rose & Crown in Walsgrave, she decided to take the plunge and open her own café on Holbrook Lane.

Speaking to CoventryLive, Tina said: “I decided to look for somewhere and could not afford to go for something expensive so went for a café instead. I have built the good-will up over the years and we have been going from strength to strength really.”

Costs nearly doubled for the business owner over the past year which meant that she was left unable to continue running her beloved eatery. She said: “Well, this year has been the first year that I have ever put my prices up twice and that is because of electricity and food costs.”

Cost of living pressures are hurting businesses everywhere at the moment. She said the cost of food, rent and electricity had all impacted her over the past year.

It is a bittersweet moment to have to close, but Tina said she has simply loved every moment at the café in Holbrooks. She said: “It was enjoyable because every day is different, no day is the same and you never what to expect. All the characters I have met over the years have been really nice.”

Tina shared her gratitude to all of her loyal customers as well as the support of the community. “It has been brilliant to get to know everybody and have the customer base that I have and I thank all of our customers for all of their loyalty over the years and I shall miss them all,” she said.

However, this may not be the end as Tina hopes she will be able to find an alternative site nearby. She said: “We have been looking, but because it takes a while to build up goodwill and have that customer base we are looking near where we are at the moment so that our customers would move with us.”

However, the search so far has been unsuccessful. “Well, there has been nothing that has been suitable for us to carry on but we have been trying because none of us wants to actually finish there. We were quite happy to go on. It was out of the blue, we were not expecting this whatsoever.”

[dutchman]

I'm splitting hairs here but it's more Jackson Road than Holbrook Lane, alongside the former Brookville cinema.