An activity centre in Peterhead may be forced to close due to the cost of living crisis.
Wheelie World, on Queen Street, hosts an indoor kart track and was also one of the first businesses in the country to offer axe-throwing activities.
William and Nicola Cruden renovated and opened the former arcade building just six months before the country went into lockdown and were able to successfully adapt to the challenges of the pandemic.
Now, they have announced this summer could be the activity centre’s last unless they can gain more support from the community.
“The position we’re in now, after Covid and the increased energy costs, is not looking good for the future of the track,” Mr Cruden said.
“To keep the centre open, we need more support. We’ve been struggling to get a big reach on social media, so we have to come up with new ways to share.”
Impact of rising costs
The rising costs have had a direct impact on the business – especially due to the charging needs of the equipment – and they do not want to raise costs as they appreciate families do not have the same money to spend on activities.
The recent warm weather has also meant people are looking for more things to do outdoors.
As a result, Mr Cruden and the team have decided to keep the activity centre open until the end of the school summer holidays next week, and will then reduce the hours to weekends and private party bookings.
He added that they may be forced to close the centre completely if things continue as they are at the moment.
Focusing on sales and repairs
The couple, from St Fergus, adapted the business during the pandemic and started to sell hoverboards, e-bikes and scooters through their website, which has proved to be a big success.
Mr Cruden, an engineer by trade, also repairs hoverboards – offering the only service of its kind in Scotland.
“It’s becoming more popular,” he said.
They plan to focus on the online business and servicing moving forward, with the hopes of doing more private events and expanding their mobile options.
One of Wheelie World’s most popular bookings is for their parties, which will remain available throughout October.
“The feedback we’ve had for our parties and everything else has been fantastic, so it’ll be shame if we have to close,” Mr Cruden added.
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