Doors to a cafe at the heart of the Inverness Victorian Market are to temporarily close amid rising Covid cases.
Cafe de Paulo became one of hundreds of businesses to shut to customers for months during the height of the pandemic.
Market trader Juan Paulo, co-owner of the cafe, previously recorded losses exceeding £120,000 after the prolonged closures left him significantly out of pocket.
Speaking to the Press and Journal in August, he said trading whilst trying to navigate the various restrictions in place was an uphill battle.
He said: “I think it’s been difficult for everybody but I think particularly for the hospitality industry, it’s been really difficult.
“Business is nothing compared to what it used to be in terms of sales. The lockdown came in with no warning, it was a bit of a shock for everyone. It was definitely the right thing to do but I’m not sure if many coffee shops and restaurants are going to survive this year.
“Trying to operate a business whilst also trying to follow all the guidelines to keep our staff and our customers safe is not an easy task but I think so far we have done quite well protecting the staff and our customers.”
Less than six months on, the owners of the premises, located within the Queensgate Arcade, have decided to close until it is “safer to operate”.
In a statement released on social media, the owners said they had taken the “difficult decision” following a surge in cases.
He said: “Given the current situation in the Highlands we have taken the difficult decision to close our doors after today until it is safer to operate, for a small business like us it’s a tough period and 2020 has hit us hard but the health of our customers, team and community must always come first.
“We look forward to being able to reopen soon hopefully and are excited for the future, in the meantime please do stay safe, look after each other and be kind.”
Their decision comes just days after NHS Highland saw case numbers in the north triple over the festive period.
Health officials say increased social contact and Christmas festivities had a detrimental effect.
A NHS Highland spokeswoman said: “Across NHS Highland we have seen numbers of Covid positive cases triple in only a few days
“Increased social contact and Christmas festivities have played a major part in this.
“We also need to be conscious of the new variant of the Covid virus that spreads more rapidly
“Now that all of NHS Highland, apart from some islands, is under level 4 restrictions, we must abide by the rules so that we can reduce Covid infections.”
