Chesterfield business owner slams council after losing £15,000 due to roadworks – making it ‘absolutely impossible’ to survive

Gemma Hannan-Power is the owner of El Cafe Verde on Sheffield Road, Whittington Moor. She said that the roadworks on the busy route, managed by Derbyshire County Council, have seen her lose almost £15,000 in sales – with customers unable to park outside her premises.

“The road they’ve actually worked on is opposite us, but there’s temporary traffic lights and cones outside for single-file traffic, so you can’t park outside the cafe.

“90% of our customers come here because they can park outside. We’ve got a lot of elderly customers who like to park outside and walk in, and the workmen who are in a rush and just want to grab something quickly – parking a mile down the road and walking up isn’t an option for them.

“We’re on week 12 or 13 with no parking, and our sales have been down 70% daily, which we can see through our accounts. Going on last year’s sales and the month before it happened, we’ve lost about £14,500 from September 5 onwards.”

Gemma said that their deliveries are also being impacted – with congestion on the route making it difficult for drivers to complete their orders and leading to a spike in customer complaints.

“We still have some deliveries, but the problem is that it is taking drivers too long to get off the street, and people are then complaining that food is late, so we have to stop taking orders. What should take the drivers 15 minutes is now taking up to 45 minutes.”

“It’s not our fault, but customers don't understand that and some have started leaving bad reviews and saying the food is late – they don’t realise what we’re having to put up with.”

Derbyshire County Council does not offer compensation for businesses impacted by roadworks or closures, but Gemma said that, if the disruption continues, it would be impossible to keep the cafe open for much longer.

“What really upset me when I spoke to DCC was that they said they don’t do compensation for things like this, as they’re essential roadworks. That’s fair enough, but you’ve got to look at how much it’s affecting our business. We’re struggling to pay our bills, and I’ve got a member of staff leaving because I can't promise that I can pay her at the end of the month.

“I’m not trying to claim compensation for my profits – it’s the fact that I’m getting into debt. It’s about trying to pay our bills, keep our staff on and keep the doors open. When you’re taking £50 a day and a member of staff costs you £60, it’s just absolutely impossible.

“I’m just asking for them to give me a bit of help to pay my bills and keep the doors open. I’m a business owner, my priorities are making sure my staff and rent are paid, and my doors stay open. If I don't take a wage for a few months, that's my responsibility as a business owner.

“I need help to keep the doors open so I’m not left with absolutely nothing when they’re done – that’s the reality of it. In a few weeks time, that’s what’s going to happen – how can I stay open?”

READ THIS: Watch Chesterfield food bloggers Meats And Cheats officially open new Taco Bell restaurant

On Monday, November 7, the cones and traffic lights were briefly removed from Sheffield Road. Gemma said that day, she took more than £400 – but this was slashed to just £45 when work resumed the following day.

“Last Monday, for some reason, they had taken the cones and traffic lights away. I thought ‘amazing, the roadworks have finished’. I put a special on that day and sold it all, and I took over £400 – which is almost back to normal.

“Nobody complained about a late delivery and I thought we were going to survive this. I turned up on Tuesday and the lights and cones were back again, and that day we took £45 – that is no coincidence.”

Gemma said that she was also told by the council that she should have saved funds to help her through a situation like this – something she criticised as entirely unrealistic for a small, independent business.

“The last time I rang up, I told them I was going to end up shutting my doors for good. They said, as a responsible business owner, I should’ve made provisions for things like this.

“We’ve just got through Covid and we only started our business in 2020 with nothing – we’ve built this up and it’s like they’re taking this away from us. We were doing well before but we’re not a massive profit company – to have that kind of money in the bank for something like this is just ridiculous, it’s impossible.

“I was told they would be done on October 28 and I'm not sure what’s happening – there’s no communication. Apparently everyone was sent letters a year before it started, but we moved up here in July, and we didn't know anything about this until they pulled up one day and put the cones down.

“We’re not a franchise, and what small business that started in Covid has a spare £15,000 in the bank – it doesn’t happen does it.”

A spokesperson for Derbyshire County Council said: “We’re aware of the concerns raised by local businesses and are working hard to keep disruption to a minimum, including putting on extra teams and working longer hours to ensure the improvement scheme is done as quickly as possible.

“The scheme is set to improve safety for pedestrians, including shoppers, by creating wider pavements and installing two extra crossing points on this busy road and we’d like to apologise for any inconvenience while the improvements are carried out.

“During our works we discovered a major sewer collapse which needed to be repaired by Yorkshire Water. The emergency repair inevitably led to a hold-up in our scheme, which is due to be completed in the new year.

“To avoid the festive period, we’re suspending the work on December 12 and removing the temporary traffic management from the road to minimise disruption in the run up to Christmas.

“We’re responsible for carrying out repairs and undertaking important safety work to maintain and improve Derbyshire’s roads and pavements and don’t offer compensation in these cases.”