Costs force cat cafe to lose felines to stay open

2 hours ago

Luke Deal,in Sudburyand

Helen Burchell

News image — The cafe opened - complete with cats - three years ago

BBC A cat is sitting on a chair next to a blue and white cushion. The cat is mainly white with some brown markings. — The cafe opened - complete with cats - three years ago

A self-confessed "crazy cat lady" who opened a cat cafe three years ago said rising costs had forced her decision to keep the coffee shop, but without the furry felines.

Shelley Smith opened Finnegan's Whiskers in North Street in Sudbury, Suffolk, where for years visitors have been able to book to come in, enjoy a coffee and play with the resident cats.

However, Smith said she had to make the "heartbreaking" decision to rebrand - minus the cats - because "we're not getting enough people through the door to make it financially viable, sadly".

She said the current six resident cats had all been found homes with staff or regular customers.

A cat is lying on the floor. It is white and tabby and in the blurred background a person can be seen at a table. — While there are regulars, there are not enough visitors to keep the business viable, its owner said

"It's been a tough 12 months here - we just haven't had enough people through the door in all honesty," she told the BBC.

"Our weekends are pretty good but our weekdays are just quiet and we have huge overheads."

The cafe is in a prime location meaning she has had to cover the same overheads as other traders in the town, "but add to that the cost of having cats and everything that entails - it's a lot", she explained.

Contributed Shelley Smith is standing outside a cafe that has a sign saying "Finnegan's Whiskers". The cafe has blue window frames. She has long blonde hair and is wearing a blue top and a blue and white skirt. — Shelley Smith will close the cat cafe on Saturday and reopen as Shelley's after refurbishment

"It's heartbreaking - it was a dream of mine to have my cat cafe and it's been a really emotional decision," Smith said.

"But I think in business sometimes you have to reach that point when you have to admit that something's not working.

"But I'm so proud of what we've achieved here. We've created a most wonderful community of people that come in - we've rehomed nearly 80 cats - I'm choosing to focus on the things I'm proud of rather than being sad about it."

A black and white cat is sitting on a shelf on a wall. — The cafe was set up with lots of areas for the cats to sit or play

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There are currently six resident cats at the cafe, but when it ceases operating as such on Saturday, they will all go to new homes.

Smith said all six had been rehomed by either staff, volunteers or regular customers "so it's people they know, that I know, and they're going to have a lovely life".

"I'm calling this their cat cafe retirement era - they've worked hard and now they're ready to retire to a new stage in their lives.

"I'm going to miss them immensely... I love them so much - I'm a crazy cat lady and they're all such little individuals."

Before reopening as Shelley's, she said the cafe would be rebranded and refurbished, but she will carry on holding various events - including cat rehoming days - and expanding the food and drink offering.