One of the most popular Mexican restaurants in Vancouver is the latest establishment to permanently close its doors due to a pandemic recovery that fell short.
La Catrina, located on Denman Street in Vancouver’s West End, shut its doors for good in late October.
The owner’s stepson, Jose Mariscal, said the decision was not an easy one to make for the family.
“It was really hard to make this decision. It was a beautiful experience (running the business) here in English Bay. There were a lot of events here but the winters are slow and rent is expensive,” he said.
“We could not afford to pay back our $60,000 CEBA loan.”
The Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) loans saw the federal government provide relief to businesses that were suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We could not pay the rent and we couldn’t make the money to pay back the loan. We had to close the restaurant,” Mariscal said. “It’s very sad.”
The BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association (BCRFA) said situations like La Catrina’s are becoming more and more common.
“We are in a really tough phase right now. It’s disappointing because we came out of the pandemic strong and now we have just spiraled down,” Ian Tostenson said, BCRFA’s CEO.
“Out of the 15,000 restaurants in B.C., at least half of them are not making money or are losing money. We are getting hit by all sides, (it’s) death by a thousand cuts.”
When it comes to CEBA loans, Tostenson said very few restaurants have the cash to pay it back right now.
“Between our rising costs, government red tape and regulation, and then inaction by the federal government on CEBA loans … we have been asking for small business to have repayment of CEBA loans, which is critical (because) no one has cash,” he said.
The BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association has asked the federal government for an extension of up to two years for the repayment of CEBA loans to give some reprieve for businesses but Tostenson said the federal government is not budging.
B.C. premier David Eby has sent Prime Minister Justin Trudeau a letter, asking for the federal government to extend the loan repayments as well.
Eby’s letter has been co-signed by all the other premiers in Canada as the deadline for the CEBA loan repayment looms.
“Canadians are feeling squeezed by the rising cost of housing, groceries and other daily essentials. It’s no different for small businesses,” Eby wrote.
“Just when many small businesses are starting to find their feet after the pandemic, they’re now being walloped by rising inflation and interest rates.”
“The bottom line is that, if you are a small business and do not currently have the funds to repay your CEBA loan, you now have three years to repay it in full. The CEBA programme, which delivered over $49 billion to nearly 900,000 small businesses and non-profits across the country, including in British Columbia, was an essential part of the federal government’s swift response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The additional flexibility that we announced is significant support for small businesses who might still be struggling to make ends meet.” Senior Communications Advisor and Press Secretary, Katherine Cuplinskas said.
In British Columbia, 122,890 businesses were approved for CEBA loans worth more than $6.6 billion.
— With files from Richard Zussman