Some of Ayr's biggest pubs, bars and restaurants admit they are braced for coronavirus lockdown.
But hospitality bosses in the town insist they remain very much open for business as they appeal for regulars to stick with them.
More than 100 people are employed between the likes of Furys and Vinyl Nightclub and the Arthur Street Kitchen (ASK) empire.
And managers at both face a nervous time after Prime Minister Boris Johnson advised the public to steer clear of venues like theirs.
Jon Neil, general manager at ASK, admitted: "One sentence from Boris the other night has almost killed us.
"It's no exaggeration to say we've lost between 80 and 90 per cent of our customers since then.
"It's a horrible time for everyone in the trade and nobody knows what is coming. The uncertainty is the worst.
"Everyone understands how serious this is and the health of everyone has to come first.
"We know a lockdown is a matter of when and not if now.
"But on one hand the government has told us to stay trading while advising our customers to stay away."
Jon, who oversees venues like ASK, the Stage Door Cafe and Hollybush Inn, added: "People are understandably scared but they're continuing to queue up in shops together and mix that way.
"But because of the government warning they are not coming near our places. It's a real concern."
Venues like ASK and Hollybush are among the many offering takeaway services to keep their loyal customers fed.
But they hope punters can continue to file through the doors for as long as possible to keep the tills rolling.
Steven Muir, who runs the bustling Furys and Vinyl clubs, says his younger clientele have so far shown a level of defiance by continuing to support his venues.
But he said: "When you see a number of the bigger clubs and bars in Glasgow already saying enough is enough and shutting, it sums it up.
"But we've been lucky in that a lot of our customers have stuck with us so far and we've taken all the measures like putting hand sanitisers on the doors of our clubs as everyone comes in.
"We'll stay open for as long as we can but there's no ignoring the panic that's out there and we know it's serious.
"The message from our trade is just asking people to support us for as long as they possibly can."
