Czerwik Fine Wines & Cheeses to close its doors in Brighouse

Those are the words of a trader who is closing his shop, which has been in the heart of Brighouse town centre for more than three decades. 

John Murphy, 46, who runs Czerwik Fine Wines & Cheeses on Commercial Street is forking out £2,400 a month on electricity.

Mr Murphy has worked in the shop since leaving school (Image: Newsquest) That's a huge increase of 500 per cent on previous months. 

Speaking to the Telegraph & Argus, Mr Murphy said: "The high street is struggling and the increase in my bills is horrific.

"There is a lack of footfall. People are afraid to spend their money. My takings have gone down drastically.

"After Covid, we took the brunt of a lot of it but there is only so much you can take.

"My electricity went from £400 a month to £2,400 a month. It is just not feasible."

One of the signs in the shop (Image: Newsquest) Mr Murphy has worked in the shop for 29 of the 33 years it has been serving the people of Brighouse and further afield.

Huge sadness was expressed by staff and customers when he announced the closure on Facebook earlier this week.

Mr Murphy with previous owner Martin Holmes outside the shop (Image: Newsquest) "It is heart-breaking," he added.

"We as a team had a final meeting then put this post together which took about 45 minutes to pull together. It was heartfelt.

"We were hovering over the send button then we just did it. We all cried, of course.

"The amount of comments on the post were so touching. We made really good friends with our loyal customer base. I appreciate every single one of those messages."

The large selection of wine available (Image: Newsquest) Mr Murphy spoke of how he's sad to see how the high street has gone in recent times and has ultimately had enough.

"You can only put your price up to a certain extent," he said.

"Personally I take a modest salary from the shop as the owner. One week I worked out my hourly rate and I am on £6.08 an hour.

"This is not just me, a lot of business owners are the same.

"It is not just the 9 to 5, it is after hours and the Sundays. We were trying everything to make ends meet.

"I was working seven days a week and two of these are through until midnight. I am not getting any younger.

"Then you have got the stress that comes with it. It is becoming not fun.

"We are in a position where we are not going under but I am just addressing this before it is forced on me."

Customers are going to miss the range of cheeses on offer (Image: Newsquest) He added: "There used to be a time when you walked down the high street and spoke to other traders who had brilliant weeks, now everybody is struggling.

"We have got a fantastic high street, we are lucky in Brighouse. But it has to be a 'use it or lose it'. That is where we are.

"There is a generation of people that are not aware of the high street, only supermarket shopping.

"Now it has gone further and this generation don't even know supermarket shopping, they just know online.

"We are all guilty of just shopping online because it is so easy. It is the future, it is unstoppable. You just have to diversify.

"The decision has been made now and it is a weight off my shoulders. We are moving in a different direction."

Czerwik will remain open for the rest of the year.

Mr Murphy and the team teased a future venture by stating "this is not the end of our story, new things are coming".

The post on Facebook read: "After 33 years and much deliberation it is with great sadness and a heavy heart we have decided to close our doors.

"Obviously, this has been a very difficult decision to make and not taken lightly.

"We have enjoyed serving the people of Brighouse and would like to thank each and every one of our customers for their loyal support, fun, laughter and memories made over the last 33 years (especially in the cellar!).

"We will be closing our doors on December 31, 2024.

"This is not the end of our story new things are coming John and the Czerwik Team."