But as the price of everything began to soar, the margin reduced significantly, to the point where we weren't making enough to pay back the loan.
"When we took out the loan, we looked at what we could afford to pay back, taking into consideration our profit. I had five people working for me before Covid, but I had to let everyone but one go. People were still apprehensive about going out for meals. "The loan carried us through the first eight months after the world started to open back up again, but it was slow to bounce back. Mark Waugh with his wife Jo, who he says has been his 'rock' through the challenges his business has faced (Image: Mark Waugh) We had to change a lot of things inside the café to make it a safe place to visit, so instead of being compact and bijou it was more spaced out. We had help with grants through Covid, but because lockdowns went on for so long, we ended up taking out a bounce back loan to try and secure things. He said: "Things have been difficult since the pandemic.
He said that Jo has been his 'rock' through the difficulties the business faced, starting with the Covid-19 pandemic. Mark lives with his wife Jo and the youngest of his two grown-up children. I was never going to be a millionaire but it was a good little business, I could pay the bills and put food on the table, we lived a comfortable life." Mark explains: "I worked for the police force for 18 years before I opened the café and I put tens of thousands into the business. Read more: Edgbaston restaurant 'paying out £92,000 more a year' as cost of living crisis continues to bite It's taken a toll, not just on his finances, but on his mental health.
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He said that this astronomical rise, plus an increase on food prices by as much as 40%, meant that he had to make the 'gut wrenching' decision to close the business.
In the last year, their electricity bill soared from 12.9p a unit to 43p, and was due to go up to £1.20 a unit by the autumn. Mark, from Halesowen, opened Mighty Bite in September 2015 and has been running it alongside friend Sara. Mark Waugh, 49, shut Mighty Bite café permanently last week, telling customers 'sorry we have not sailed the storm'. A café owner who has been forced to close his Stirchley business has told of the stress and upset that rising energy and food costs have caused.
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