CBD eateries 10 James St, Gooley’s to shut doors

A pair of eateries in the culinary heart of Geelong will shut their doors.

10 James St has shut up shop. Photo: Ginger + Mint

Two businesses in the culinary heart of Geelong are closing their doors, with the owner of one blaming rising cost of living pressures.

Cafe 10 James St, formerly James St Bakery, shut its doors months ago, only announcing its closure officially on Tuesday night, while popular Little Malop St sandwich shop Gooley’s will cease trading after Friday.

Owner Jessica “Bunny” Lekkas took over 10 James St just over two years ago, but said the cost of living destroyed her business.

“It’s devastating,” Ms Lekkas said.

“We put our heart and soul into it, but we fell short.

Ms Lekkas said cost of living had decimated business. Photo: Ginger + Mint

“People just are not physically in town, the working from home coupled with the cost of living has really damaged us.”

Ms Lekkas said over the part 18 months she had noticed customers considering the price of food more consciously as pressure mounted on people’s pockets.

“People still save money to go out for dinner, but aren’t going out for breakfast,” she said.

“The shops on Pako are doing fine, because it’s a destination breakfast, but we’re struggling.

“I toiled away and slogged it out, it’s just not worth the pain.”

The patterns began to become noticeable about six months after taking over the helm of what was a Geelong institution, she said.

“People would alway have a coffee and a cake, until that started to stop,” Ms Lekkas said.

“I’ve been in the industry for such a long time, you could tell that people were conscious of their spending, all of a sudden.”

Free parking in town, something Mayor Stretch Kontelj has long been spruiking, as well as incentivising employees to come into work are a couple of fixes Ms Lekkas said could help businesses in the future.

“The government needs to acknowledge that we’re in some kind of a recession,” she said.

“Council needs to do more to support small business, taking out payment for parking in the CBD can be the difference between someone buying a coffee or not.”

A short walk down Little Malop St, a sign on a window spells the end of another hospitality venue.

Gooley’s opened its doors in the CBD in July after a successful launch of its Torquay store.

It has since become a popular lunch spot for the city’s workers.

The sandwich shop will shut its doors on Friday.

Originally published as CBD eateries 10 James St, Gooley’s to shut doors