The cost-of-living crisis has been blamed for the impending closure of two Aberystwyth town centre businesses.

Two town centre businesses have announced that they will be closing their doors in the coming months, with the cost of running a business to blame.

No 21 Flowers on Chalybeate Street announced on social media that it may have to close in the new year in what owner Alex Hales called ‘the hardest post they’ve ever made’.

The post said: “We’ve had an absolute blast but unfortunately, like so many other shops in Aberystwyth, we just can’t sustain the business in its current form. Costs are rising and running a shop in a town which is slowly getting quieter and quieter is becoming increasingly hard. The phrase “use it or lose it” is unfortunately becoming the reality.”

Med Delight, the family-run Mediterranean restaurant on North Parade, has also announced its closure.

The restaurant’s owner, Zoheir Saoudi, was born in Algeria, but has lived in the Aberystwyth area for 30 years. He has run Med Delight for nine years and employs seven people, though in the past, and over the summer, that number has gone up to 12.

“The idea of closing the restaurant has been in my mind these past few months,” he said. “I’m in and out of hospital at the moment having physiotherapy on my arms, which makes working in the restaurant very difficult. But it was when the budget was announced, that was when the decision was made for definite.

“It’s been a hard time, for us and for customers, with the cost of living going up, people can’t eat out as easily. But for us, it’s rising costs, which we can’t put onto customers when everything else is going up as well. We’ve tried to take the costs ourselves, but there’s only so much you can afford.”

“It’s been a slower summer, there hasn’t been as much foot traffic in the town.

“Less people have been coming here. That has a knock on effect on us for the rest of the year.

“We support ourselves through the winter months through the money we make in the summer. But there has been a drop in the winter too, the November fair has just been, and that usually brings a surge for the time, but we’ve not seen the same numbers this year as we have in the past.”

Mr Sauodi said one of the costs which is having the most impact on his business is the cost of energy and electricity, which have been uncapped for businesses.

He said: “A few years ago we were paying about 20p per kilowatt of electricity, now we pay 45p, and there’s talk it could rise up to the 80s. We have to pay whatever it goes up to.”