A fixture on Canterbury city centre's bar scene for 16 years, Bramleys was well-known for its live music, quirky décor and extensive cocktail menu.

After announcing the difficult decision to close for good this week, owner Jack Mayhew lays bare the struggles facing independent businesses - and what can be done to save the few remaining.

I opened Bramleys in 2007 aged 23, because I wanted to create something different and unique.

I loved Bramleys, and my whole life revolved around it. I don’t think people always realise how owners feel about their businesses. The motivation isn’t just financial – there is a pride, and enormous satisfaction in providing a service, and expressing oneself.

Closing Bramleys was a very difficult decision to make. We had such a loyal following, but we could never make enough money at the end of the week, and it felt like every week there was a new price rise or new expense, it became too emotionally draining.

People have been shocked and surprised to hear Bramleys has closed down. I think from the outside looking in it can seem that all is well, when in reality it was very different, and that reality is felt by many businesses in Canterbury.

I think it’s important to highlight what is going on - not just in Canterbury, but up and down the country. I love Canterbury, and it saddens me seeing it go in this direction.

Have a walk down Canterbury high street, and it is almost entirely chains and empty shops. Independents have been priced out - you can find them in the side streets now.

Policies that can rectify this are entirely in the power of the city council. I'd like to believe they have Canterbury’s best interests at heart, but I think there's a lack of care.

I imagine they see every chain that’s setting foot here as a win. What I question is how much of a win is it? And for whom?

The wealth generated in businesses like the Cosy Club or Nando's gets siphoned off to shareholders far out of Canterbury. We get their near-minimum staff wages - is that a win for Canterbury?

Not to speak of the uniformity and blandness that many of the chains impose on our city.

Elsewhere, the £115m council-owned Riverside leisure complex might look good on paper, but it will serve a heavy blow to Canterbury’s city centre.

What exactly was the point of it? And how were decisions made about who gets to be there?

We have plenty of empty shops that could be filled with wonderful unique outlets, with residential accommodation above them. They could have created start-up grants, subsidised the extortionate rents, and created openings for businesses that complement each other. Why create something that by its very nature will take footfall out of the city centre? It doesn’t make sense.

I’m not against chains per se, every city and many industries need them, but I am against an influx of chains that instead of complementing well-established smaller businesses, forces them to fight for scraps. It creates a dog-eat-dog world and concentrates wealth at the very top, not in local community.

I would also like to see the formation of an independent traders association, as I think Canterbury BID (Business Improvement District), although it does a lot to promote Canterbury on a regional and national level - by its very nature is unable to give independent businesses the voice they need.

I hope the people of Canterbury support independent businesses as much as possible, and realise they are the backbone of our city. My business isn’t the first to go, and won’t be the last.

I know the cost-of-living crisis is affecting people’s choices, but one of the reasons independent businesses put their prices up is to survive in the face of the huge increase in chains in Canterbury - who can charge less, and attract more people because of their buying power. It’s a vicious circle.

People may think they are supporting businesses by buying through Deliveroo, etc, but the reality is the amount of money we get after they take their cut is tiny. We joined Deliveroo but stopped when customers were paying £20 for a pizza that cost £12 in our bar. For £20, you could have got a pizza and two cocktails.

There are ways people can support local and save money. A few months ago, I tried to attract people to the King's Mile area of the city with a not-for-profit app that rewards people for shopping local. We developed it into an app that’s now spread across Kent and other parts of the UK.

The more businesses and users it gains, the more it can help independent businesses. The app is called DEFY. and can be found on iOS and Android app stores. My hope is that DEFY. and other campaigns can help prevent more independents going under.

It is too late for Bramleys, but not too late for our other independents.