Nook Espresso at Burleigh gets last-minute reprieve after owners negotiated to extend venue’s lease

A popular Burleigh coffee shop set to shut in coming days has been granted an unexpected stay of execution. Here’s how it happened.

A beloved Burleigh coffee shop set to shut next week has been granted an eleventh-hour reprieve.

Nook Espresso will continue in its current home until the end of August after co-owners Marcus Wilkins and Paola Pearse negotiated to extend their lease.

Customers lining up at Nook. Picture: Tertius Pickard

“Everyone is coming in expecting us to be gone or it be our last week, so it’s such a great feeling being able to tell them we have an extra few months,” Mr Wilkins.

“We’re here until August and in that time we hope to lock in another location.”

OPINION: NOOK CLOSURE SYMBOLISES DECAY OF COAST SUBURB

Landlords Burleigh Pavilion previously told the Nook partners the lease would not be extended beyond June 4, bringing an end to 14 years in business.

Pavilion owner Ben May said in April he planned to operate a new coffee and kiosk shop in the hole-in-the-wall space, explaining what kind of businessman would he be if he didn’t maximise the space in his operation.

Mr Wilkins said on Thursday morning of the original closure news: “I shared the news on my personal Instagram and the reaction was crazy.

Marcus Wilkins and Olivia Ayres serve up coffee at Nook in Burleigh. Picture: Tertius Pickard

“It’s that old saying, you don’t realise what you’ve got until it’s gone.

“We knew from the way people queued up early in the morning, in the rain, through the elements, that we meant something but we didn’t realise how much.

“All the kind words and support have been amazing.”

NOOK BOSS BREAKS SILENCE ON EXPECTED CLOSURE

Mr Wilkins said the most difficult part had been telling his team.

“They have been so good, so positive,” he said.

“I was scared to tell them at the start, but all of them said we want to see it out – not just for us, for our regulars too.”

A customer being served at the popular coffee shop. Picture: Tertius Pickard

As the tiny team continues to churn out powder-blue takeaway cups from its headland hole-in-the-wall, Mr Wilkins is constantly fielding one question: where to next?

“I don’t have the answer just yet, which is hard,” he said.

“But (the new location) will definitely be in Burleigh

“It’s a pretty special place with what we’ve created down there.

“It’s not about the business for me, it’s about the people.”