The team behind a popular independent Cardiff city centre bar that recently closed has revealed plans to open a coffee shop.
Bub's Bar and Kitchen in Church Street announced in November last year that it would close for good this month after its lease came to an end and it has now shut.
Following the announcement, Chris Rowlands, who runs Bub's, told WalesOnline the pub's lease had been ended after the building's owner had activated a break clause, which allows either the landlord or the tenant to terminate a lease at any time during the contract term. He said they had been given until the end of January to vacate the building.
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However, in a video posted on Bub's Facebook page on Sunday following the bar's closure, Chris announced an update for the future of the business and revealed plans to open a coffee bar in the city centre.
"We've been doing really well throughout the pandemic and managed to save everyone's jobs, making sure they stay on living wage," Chris said in the video. "Because we're a small, agile business, we are able to move quickly and think on our feet."
Chris added that the business was forced to take out a bounceback loan during the pandemic making it difficult for them to acquire investment for a re-location.
The team set up a business called the Happy Little Pub Co., designed to be a "more flexible, more light-on-your-feet business that isn't rooted in bricks and mortar".
While Chris says that they don't yet have a name for their new business venture the team is about to sign a lease for a city centre location. "It's going to be more of a coffee bar vibe than just a bar," he said in the video.
"Obviously it's us so we're going to have a lot of cool, quirky beers because that's the heart of out business but we'll also have a much stronger daytime offering."
The business is set to be a coffee and tea house during the day with Chris saying that they hope to open within the next 30 to 40 days. The same team will also be moving over to the new business.
"We wanted to make sure every job was protected," Chris told WalesOnline. "Some staff have in the interim found other jobs but about 90% of the staff are coming along with us."
The new location is city centre based and within a "30-second walk" of the previous location in Church Street.
"Hospitality as an industry has faced a lot of changes over the last 20 years really and for a small business to survive it needs to adapt and change with the times," Chris said.
"The daytime industry is quite prevalent in Cardiff still whereas the nighttime industry is quite thin on the ground, especially with Covid, so we wanted to make a business that is still us – Bub's was all about the quirkiness and finding independent beers, finding stuff you're not going to see anywhere else in the UK let alone Wales.
"So we'll still be doing that, but, in the daytime trade, from about eight or 9am, we'll have coffee, tea, cakes, homemade food – more of a coffeehouse kind of vibe.
"In the evening until about 9pm we'll probably see more of a post-work crowd coming down for some quirky craft beers, spirits, and cocktails. It's kind of a merge between those two elements."
Chris says he is feeling optimistic about the new venture. "When we took over Bub's we inherited a business that was, at the time, not doing very well and had amassed quite a bit of debt. We managed to turn that around when we took over," he said.
"In this business we're obviously starting from scratch so we're starting from a better position than where we were when we started Bub's."
However he added that there is still a question mark over what the Welsh Government plans to do in terms of Covid restrictions in the future.
"It's hard to plan when you don't know what's coming next but at the end of the day people's jobs are on the line so you can't wait until it all blows over. We're opening this business regardless and we'll take whatever comes head on.
"We're optimistic, but, at the same time, we're building a business that's designed to be agile."
The team are due to sign a lease for the new location for the business and Chris says that they have scheduled work to "hopefully" open within their goal of a 30-to-40-day timeframe.
"We've always been massively appreciative to the people who chose to support us, especially in the last few years. Times have been pretty tough for everyone with all the Covid restrictions and people on furlough so anyone who chooses to spend money in our place is always something we're immensely grateful for," Chris said.
"Hopefully that continues – our whole ethos is about being an independent business that pays people a living wage and treats people right.
"Luckily customers have responded that and always supported us and hopefully that will continue."
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