St Luke's Hospice Plymouth coffee shop closes as 'tough decision' is made amid rising costs

St Luke’s Hospice Plymouth has announced the immediate closure of its coffee shop amid soaring costs. The organisation’s b.kinda coffee shop opened off the Ridgeway in Plympton just 15 months ago.

The charity had aimed to create a "new, sustainable income stream", with all profits going towards funding end of life care at St Luke's. It has now blamed "large and rising overheads," including a rise in National Insurance contributions, for what it says was a "tough decision" to shut up shop.

The coffee shop will be turned into a charity shop for St Luke's, with its existing unit nearby being let out to another retailer.

READ MORE: Plymouth's new bus shelters delayed by contract deadlock

READ MORE: Huge changes to Plymouth's bus services as council stumps up cash

St Luke’s chief executive officer George Lillie said: “Walk past the coffee shop and you would see what looks like a busy and thriving establishment, but behind the scenes the impact of heavy overheads has been taking its toll. When you add in the additional pressures of increased employer National Insurance contributions and the rise in National Minimum Wage, sadly we feel unable to continue operating the business.

“We are so grateful to the staff who put their hearts into trying the make the coffee shop a success. They did such a fantastic job of creating a friendly and welcoming space where members of the local community really felt at home, and that’s what makes this decision such a tough one.

“Rest assured that we will be following a robust process, making every effort to offer alternative roles within St Luke’s for the coffee shop’s contracted staff.”

Mr Lillie said St Luke's will now focus on its shops alongside other fundraising projects to bring in much-needed funds.

He added: “With the majority of our funding coming from the local community, we need to raise millions of pounds every year to support St Luke’s end of life services.

“Like many other charities, we are always seeking sustainable income generation opportunities outside the traditional streams of fundraising and retail. We had hoped that branching out into the coffee shop market would be a profitable enterprise. Sadly this has not been the case.

“For the time being, in terms of income generation, we will be focusing on retail and the continuing growth of our successful local charity shops, as well as both established and new fundraising initiatives.”

Click here to join PlymouthLive on WhatsApp and we'll send breaking news and top stories directly to your phone. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.