It goes without saying that this is going to be a really, really tough period for businesses, not just in Cumbria but up and down the country.

There will be a select few that will thrive in times like this.

But for the majority it is a bleak picture as the Covid-19 crisis this week plunged the country into its first recession for 11 years.

And it also comes at a time when Barrow is high on the list of large UK town's that have seen the biggest departure of nationally chained stores.

A number have left the area in recent years but that doesn't make Barrow or any other town in Cumbria unique.

High street chains have been pulling out of town's all over the UK, largely down to the increase in online shopping.

The Covid-19 crisis will only lead more store bosses to question whether they can viably have as many shops in towns as they do at the moment.

It is a scary time. People are losing jobs, as we have seen with Debenhams.

But there could be a positive way to look at the current business and retail situation we are currently in.

Yes there might be a reduction in the big named stores, but that could pave the way for the birth of locally owned independent shops.

There are plenty of towns that thrive on having locally owned businesses over the big boys, and maybe that might be a direction that Barrow could potentially go in.