The Kettering cafe fighting back against the cost of living crisis

Up and down the country you’ll find countless businesses which have fallen victim to the cost of living crisis.

Long-standing pubs and shops which have passed through generations have been forced to close because of rising energy bills and food costs.

It’s a crisis which makes the decision to open a new venture even more brave – but a Kettering brother and sister are celebrating reaching a year in business after doing just that.

Co-owners Paul Goodyear and sister Jane opened The Hut cafe on June 6 last year and admit the nation’s financial woes have made it hugely challenging.

But they’ve been determined to create a community environment that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg for diners – and one year on they’re thriving.

Paul, who recently completed the Marathon des Sables for charity, said: “We have seen prices from our suppliers soar over the past year but we have absorbed most of these, with only small increases passed on to our customers.

"This has meant we are extremely competitive, even against the larger chains.

"We feel that we have created a community environment where we see so many of our customers more than once a week.

"This is testament to how they are treated by our amazing team, led by Samantha our manager.

"We understand things are tight for our customers, but they need a space to come and meet with friends and family that won’t cost them the earth.”

The cafe, in St John’s Road on the Ise Lodge estate, prides itself on using as much as they can from other local independent businesses.

They use The Roastery in Wellingborough for all of their coffee needs, The Good Loaf in Northampton for sourdough bread and Frank’s Butchers in Rothwell for their sausages and sausage meat, used in their freshly-made sausage rolls.

It’s also been Paul and Jane’s first venture into the world of catering – and they’re proud that they’re still going strong.

Paul added: “Having never been involved in any type of catering businesses previously, to say it was a steep learning curve would be an understatement.

"Having successfully owned and ran other businesses it’s all about transferring existing skills and knowledge.”