A Cardiff pub has announced it is changing hands and being transformed into a "pizza pub" venue. On May 1 St Canna's Ale House, a micropub serving local beer in Pontcanna, will be taken over by Slizza Pizza.
James Morgan, the landlord of St Canna's, said he was "gutted" to be closing the pub, which he opened in 2017. Mr Morgan said the difficulties of the current cost of living crisis meant the business had become "unworkable."
The ale house had already sublet a portion of the premises to Slizza Pizza to run their business. Mr Morgan, 42, said they approached him explaining that they were looking to expand and asked if he would be willing to sell the premises to them.
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"After a lot of thought and consideration, I decided that that would probably be the best thing for everyone," he said. Asked about the reasons behind the decision, he said: "It's not an unusual story - like for every hospitality business at the moment, it's a struggle. And, to put it bluntly, it became too much of a struggle.
"The business wasn't going in the direction we wanted it to go. We tried a lot of things over the last 12 months to turn it around... but it just hasn't turned around as much as we needed." He said "a lot of different factors" were at play.
"I have meditated on this question for months; why is it that things have changed? I think there is the general issues of people haven't got so much money any more, they're being more careful so they're not going out so much, and also, crucially, when they do go out, they're not spending as much."
He added that the pub's utility bills had "skyrocketed" and the footfall had been impacted by the fact new bars had opened in the vicinity in the last year. "I feel that the increase in that competition has also put a massive dent in our business.
"Being a small business, we don't have any money to bail it out or anybody to bail us out when things are difficult. We survive or die based on our own effort. I think that is the added pressure.
"Because if things are a challenge for too long, you haven't necessarily got the funding there to be able to weather it. If there was any other way, if there was any other avenue that I think was realistic, we'd take it so this didn't have to happen. But unfortunately the conclusion I've come to is that there is not. I am gutted.
"This is something that I built up in six years. It's going to be really sad to walk away from it. But it is what it is unfortunately." On its Facebook page Slizza Pizza, which specialises in beer dough pizza, issued a statement announcing the takeover.
It said will "hit the ground running" on Bank Holiday Monday May when it takes over the entire premises. "We have lots of plans for refurbishing and upgrading the venue so keep your eyes peeled for updates," the post read. "We hope to get this done ASAP. See you down the pizza pub soon."
Mr Morgan will have no ties to the new venture, which will be called 'Slizza Pizza & Pub.' He still owns The Little Tap House, a unique cafe and bar offering craft beer, coffee and gaming in Newport city centre which opened last year.
But he said he would also be "taking a step back" from the Newport venture, which he said was facing the same challenges as St Canna's such as soaring costs and poor patronage.
"Essentially the Little Tap House can't afford to give me a wage and [the person] who I employ. So I'm actually looking for another job at the moment to get a wage. It's difficult times."
Mr Morgan came under fire in November 2021 after he sent a "creepy" text message to a customer who had provided her number for Track and Trace purposes. He issued a statement in December saying he was “sorry for letting down the community” over the text. Speaking with WalesOnline in 2022 ahead of opening the Little Tap House, Mr Morgan said the incident was something he hoped he could "move on from."
Asked whether the controversy had influenced his decision to close St Canna's, he said: "No, my decision is purely a business decision based on finances. If it wasn't for the financial situation, I would be keeping it on and running it for as long as I could."
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