On the evening of June 6th, a car crashed into the front of the Emmeline premises on Cheltenham Road. While nobody (luckily) was hurt, it’s meant that the independent coffee shop can’t trade until the structural damage has been repaired.
Exactly when that happens, though, depends on third parties: Shona and the team are still waiting to hear from their insurance company as to when the repairs will be done.
For any independent business, such an event can be devastating: not just because of the shock of seeing something like this happen, but because it’s taking away the livelihoods of the owner and staff, through circumstances that are beyond their control.
But Bristol has shown itself once again to be an incredibly caring city that supports its independents through thick and thin, with a JustGiving page having been set up by “friends of Emmeline” to raise funds to cover a month’s-worth of overheads to keep the Emmeline team on their feet.
The fundraising target is £4,000 (which shows just how much it costs to operate a food and drink business in the city!), with the crowdfunder having been launched on June 12th. Under 24 hours later, 69% of the target had already been reached, with £2,762 donated by 116 supporters.
If you’d like to get involved and show your support, visit the JustGiving page here. While it’s sad to hear of the incident that’s forced Emmeline’s temporary closure, it’s also massively uplifting to see just how much Bristol cares.