Their determination has been matched throughout the town. Garry Thompson runs Mr Thoms in Teme Street whilst a few doors down Sarah Thompson has the card and gift shop Special Occasions. Both businesses, like others throughout the town have suffered during a year that has seen first the floods and then the Covid-19 pandemic. But it has been Special Occasions that has been hit hardest. The February flooding resulted in severe damage that caused the shop to be closed for more than six months. Because of coronavirus, there were delays in getting the work done but after a major refit it opened again at the end of October, only to have to close again within days because of the November lockdown. This resulted in lost sales during one of the most important months of the year and compounded the loss of Easter, Mothers’ Day and Fathers’ Day.