'Passion alone isn't enough to keep a business alive': Leeds trader announces closure of Kirkgate Market café

A Leeds woman has said that choosing to close her popular Kirkgate Market food business is one of the “hardest decisions” she has ever had to make.

Paniz Younesian, 25, announced that her English breakfast bar Savoury Station would stop trading in the city centre at the end of the year due to financial struggles.

The young businesswoman bought the café at just 22 years old and began officially trading in April 2024.

“I’ve given this business everything I had. I’ve worked six days a week, doing everything possible to keep the doors open,” Paniz told the Yorkshire Evening Post.

“Despite all of that hard work, I haven’t been able to pay myself a wage, let alone make a profit. There comes a point where passion alone isn’t enough to keep a business alive.”

Savoury Station specialises in a range of breakfast favourites including fry-ups, crepes, omelettes, and milkshakes.

Paniz invested £40,000 into the business, a decision she knew was a “risk” but something she hoped would help create a staple community café.

She delayed closing the business because she worried people would think she had “failed”.

Paniz said: “Eventually, I realised that staying silent wasn’t helping anyone. I decided to speak openly because I want other young people to know that it’s okay to ask for help and it’s okay to walk away from something that is no longer sustainable.

“Buying a business at 22 was something I was incredibly proud of, and although this chapter hasn’t ended the way I hoped, I know I gave it absolutely everything I had.”

When Paniz announced that Savoury Station was set to close on Tuesday (July 28), she received an outpouring of support from customers.

Paniz said that leaving behind her loyal regulars, who have said Savoury Station serves “one of the best proper English breakfasts in Leeds”, is one of the toughest parts of closing.

However, tackling rent prices and other business costs has created a debt build-up which has forced her to give up her passion.

“I did everything I could to slowly pay it off, but I reached the point where I realised I was never going to catch up,” Paniz said.

“I felt trapped, working every day just to stand still, knowing the situation was only getting worse.”

The 25-year-old celebrates how Kirkgate Market has an “amazing variety” of food from across the world but is disappointed to be leaving especially when she had high hopes for her business.

However, Paniz wants to be an example to others that closing a business isn’t something to be ashamed of.

She said: “Walking away has been one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make, but I hope by sharing my experience, others will realise that stepping away from an unsustainable situation isn’t failure.

“Sometimes it’s the strongest decision you can make.”