Business owners across the country are warning that they may not survive the second lockdown of the year.

The Government last night confirmed that the entire country will move to Level Five restrictions until December 1st.

The Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he was hopeful we will be able to “celebrate Christmas in a meaningful way” if people follow the rules in the coming weeks.

This morning, Newstalk Breakfast spoke to three business owners to see if they expect to survive the shutdown.

Claire Nash, owner of Nash 19 Restaurant in Cork city, said she would be “digging deep” to say she expects the business to be in a good place come January.

“Normally 30% of our trade would be done during the Christmas period but it is actually more like 60% will have to be done because, bear in mind, we haven’t traded for six months and the two months we have traded have been very poor trading,” she said.

Nash 19 on Prince’s Street in Cork. Image: Facebook

She said business owners are worried but they “understand what the Government has to do.”

“We are very disappointed it is a six-week rollout not a three-week with review of same,” she said.

“We are hopeful and we were told yesterday that we would have sector specific supports. They need to be very specific supports. We can’t leave any of our full-time teams go again.

“It is not like you just turn off plant and equipment like you do for industry. You can’t turn people off and on and then be expected, on December 1^st, to rock on an have whatever Christmas we are going to roll out.

“We are very cognisant of the fact we have teams of people who are suffering now with their mental health and huge stress.”

Grafton Street in Dublin City Centre, 29-04-2020. Image: Eamonn Farrell/RollingNews

Meanwhile, salon owner Dylan Bradshaw warned that the decision to shutter hairdressers and barbers will create a black market in the coming weeks – with people hiring hairdressers to come to their homes.

He warned that the Christmas period will not be enough keep the business running if things shut down again early in the new year.

“This is people’s lives and livelihoods and the thing that really frustrates me is that the Government are really great at getting out this thing that this three-week window at Christmas is suddenly going to solve all our problems,” he said.

“We can’t get back to business the way we normally do. The problem we have is we have literally only a three-week window in December and even if we didn’t have a pandemic, January and February is like a ghost town anyway.

“This country is going to go into an absolute meltdown in December because everybody is going to be out socialising and gathering and having the fun.

“I am really nervous to see what happens in January and February.”

Meanwhile, Darren O’Brien from 3G Fitness in Kildare said his gym members are devastated the business will have to close.

“There was a petition put out last week to make gyms an essential service,” he said.

“I think on last check there was 35,000 signatures on it so a lot of people are interested in keeping their gyms open. It is just a great mental break more than anything for people to get out and let off some steam.

“Everybody is stuck at home now; they are working from home and the gym is just a break and it is just sad to see.”