Coronavirus business update: Latest news across Yorkshire
The manager of S20 Physique gym in Sheffield, has appealed for support to fight the Prime Minster’s decision that gyms should again close.
Dean Ellis has cited both the low-COVID transmission figures in relation to gyms and the mental health benefits of exercise.
Ellis said he and his team feel the decision should be reviewed and overturned, not just for their wellbeing as a business, but for the wellbeing of their customers and gym-goers across the UK.
In an open message to MP Clive Betts he explained: “We bring people together not only for their physical fitness but also their mental health needs within the community we have carefully built over the last four years.
“We have had 12,325 people through the doors since we reopened on July 25 with zero cases of corona reported to us or through any of the track and trace efforts.
“Fitness facilities as a whole over the UK have had over 30,000,000 people through their track and trace systems with only 78 confirmed cases within the industry. This equals one in 384,615 people.”
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Martin Shaw
The boss of a business in Hull has managed to avoid the cliff edge of COVID-19.
Martin Shaw, managing director of D3 Office Group, reaped the rewards of keeping in contact with customers and shifting the focus of his business.
Between March and September he sold Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) worth £1.8m – a market which had brought in just £4,000 during the same period in 2019.
D3 Office Group, which also has a site in Sherburn-in Elmet, was initially hit as its furniture suppliers stopped manufacturing and its workwear business dropped to 10% of normal levels.
Shaw said: “We never closed because many customers were getting in touch and telling us how much they needed us, and we took a lot of heart from that. We were open, speaking to people regularly and they asked about supplying other things that they needed.
“Our biggest lines have been surgical masks and disposable gloves. Before this we only did them in small quantities and we didn’t know anything about that market but we learned quickly because we had to check the credentials and certification.
“The furniture side is now focusing on people who work from home. Employers realise they have had people sitting on kitchen chairs, and in the longer term they will need better equipment.
“They are also thinking what their office will look like in the longer term. They won’t have as many people but they still want a nice environment because it helps productivity. We have been asked about redesigning offices as well. It’s going to be more IT-led.”
Shaw shared his lockdown story during a Zoom event organised by For Entrepreneurs Only (FEO) in partnership with David Hall, co-founder of FEO.
Hall said: “The idea was to bring together some of our entrepreneurs from Hull and East Yorkshire and hear their first-hand accounts of how they faced up to the threats posed to their businesses by Covid-19.
“There were examples of great leadership in every case, positive mental attitude, a can-do mindset, being able to develop people, finding people within who can help, communicating with people and keeping the team onside.”
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Within a week of the announcement that Leeds’s Rolling Social Events was to host a Christmas Market at Leeds Corn Exchange, the market was cancelled due to the second lockdown.
The event was due to open on Friday 20 November and run every weekend for five weeks.
Samantha Fish, co-founder of Rolling Social, said: “It’s heart-breaking to not be able to bring such a lovely event to the people of Leeds and its surrounding areas.
“We were all set to celebrate this great city and all its independent offers but sadly it won’t be this year.”
Adam Warner, centre manager at Leeds Corn Exchange, said: “We are disappointed to not host the Christmas Market but encourage shoppers to keep an eye on our boutiques, many of whom will offer online shopping.
“It’s more important than ever to support local and support independents.”
The Rolling Social team will now focus on their social distanced event – the Sip Along.
Created in response to the first lockdown, the Sip Along aims to bring people together to celebrate safely.
Hosted by some of the biggest names in the spirit and wine industries, ticket holders receive a sample back delivered to their home and a link to join the event by Zoom.
They are then taken through each sample with the experts to discover the history and the recipes of the beverage.
The next Sip Along is on Friday 20 November with Glengoyne Whisky of Scotland.
