TRADERS on Southend’s seafront say it has been so quiet since Covid hit they believe they may as well close during the week.

Martin Richardson, owner of the Happidrome Arcade on Marine Parade, says that business is now so slow that shutting from Monday to Friday wouldn’t make a difference in the numbers they have walking through the door.

Even before the latest restrictions were introduced, the arcade only saw half the amount of customers last month in comparison to the previous August.

And Mr Richardson says that this extends further than the four walls of his arcade, reporting that only a quarter of normal trade remains on the seafront.

He said: “It truly has been so quiet we may as well close Monday to Friday.

“Business just isn’t picking up - people are worrying whether they can go out, whether they can’t go out, and nobody has really been given any clear instruction. The kids are also back to school.

“We shut around late November after the fireworks anyway, but now they’re not taking place.

“I’m trying to be as optimistic as possible, but I think the council need to do something to try and extend the season.

“The people also need to do their part - the quicker we can get rid of the virus, the quicker we can get back to normal.”

Fears have now been raised as to what seafront traders will do if further Covid-19 restrictions come into play, on top of poor weather conditions during the colder winter months.

Joan Tiney, from the Borough Hotel, said: “The latest rule of shutting at 10pm just isn’t good for business. I’m not expecting things to get better.

“I do worry what will also happen if any more are put in place. We still have to have extra staff in though to make sure people have table service, but we aren’t getting the numbers to pay for it.”

The 70-year-old, who is also from the Southend Seafront Traders Association, added: “Even when the weather got colder last week it went quiet, so I pray even further restrictions aren’t added.”

Paul Thompson, owner of Pebbles One cafe on Marine Parade, added: “It’s going to be terrible for the seafront through the winter.

“We’re having to lay staff off, and I’m sure it will be the same along the seafront.

“If more restrictions are put in we may even have to close until the spring.”

'Top priority must be stamping out virus'

THE sooner Covid-19 is stamped out, the sooner businesses will return to normal, the leader of Southend Counil has insisted.

Councillor Ian Gilbert has reassured that the council will be doing what they can to support traders, with their top priority being to get through the pandemic as quickly as possible.

He explained: “Of course I understand and recognise this is a tough time for our businesses, who probably have never been in a position like this before.

“The most important thing however is that we deal with the pandemic and manage to stamp out the virus, so we don’t have further restrictions in place in the future.

“The quicker we do this, the quicker we can get back to business as normal.

"We hope this will drive people to go out and visit the town, spend and shop and support our traders.

“We’re working with businesses to help them operate safely and as best they can under the current restrictions. To do this we have already given visitors discounted parking in most of our car parks to encourage people to still come into the high street.

“We’re also doing what we can to invest for the long term to help our town recover. For the next few months, putting an end to the pandemic is our top priority."