29/01/2014
Hi Folks, I note that a number of people are asking why The Doric Café has closed down. I'm sorry that I have not explained the reasons earlier.
I did post a notice on the front of the café when I closed explaining the reasons but was forced by the Landlords, Union Square, to remove this as they wanted to tell me what to put in the notice and didn't like what I had put.
When I opened the café in August 2010 we were part of The Streat Café franchise. The franchise chose the premises for me but the premises they chose at Union Square was far to large for the type of café we were setting up. We had a large area at the rear of the café which was unused but we still had to pay for.
In the Summer of 2012 it was agreed that we could break away from the Streat as most of the Streat cafes in Scotland had failed, due mostly to unsuitable locations being chosen for them.
Since trading as The Doric café we almost doubled our sales but we were still unable to sustain the very large fixed costs for rent, service charges and business rates. As a result we were forced to close in December.
I must thank all our loyal customers and also say sorry to you for not being able to carry on.
I would like also to thank all of the team at the Doric for sticking with me and wish them all the best for the future.
Best Wishes
Alan
