Vancouver Island winery to close, citing pandemic-era debt – BC [Video]

After nearly 20 years in business, a husband and wife winery in B.C.’s Cowichan Valley is closing up shop, citing the fallout from paying back pandemic-era government loans.

Rocky Creek Winery president and owner Linda Holford said the business took on $60,000 in Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) debt when the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

Holford said the small winery took the loans, never anticipating interest rates would surge soon afterward.

“I actually thought the government was giving me a lifeline, but now it’s choking me,” she said.

The winery has since paid back all of the debt, but keeping up with increased interest payments over two years did damage to the business it just can’t recover from.

“From December to January, my interest payments for all of this debt … it actually took a third of my operating budget,” she said.

Combined with inflation and a slowdown in tourism, she said the …