Last week, I found myself back at Coffee Cottage at South Barrule. Not for the first time, and certainly not for the last.

Tucked away in the plantation, it’s one of those places many islanders know well, particularly dog walkers and runners who understand the quiet joy of a coffee and a bap after a muddy walk or run.

It’s off the beaten track, unpretentious and quietly brilliant, the sort of place that reminds you why the Isle of Man is special.

I’ll admit, part of the reason I went was simply because it’s a lovely spot. But there was another reason too.

Just weeks before Christmas, the Examiner had reported on the severe financial blow suffered by the business, a story that hit hard.

Coffee Cottage forms part of a wider operation run by Carl Underwood, who also owns Laser Mayhem and Quad Bike Mania at South Barrule.

Carl revealed he had been left around £50,000 out of pocket after the online ticketing company he had used for seven years, WebTicketManager, suddenly went into liquidation.

Payments stopped arriving in late September. Then came the Halloween Scare Maze, his biggest event of the year, attracting more than 1,600 visitors over three nights.

By the time the dust settled, more than £30,000 in ticket revenue was missing. Once staff wages, event setup and honouring pre-booked sessions were factored in, the shortfall grew closer to £50,000.

There was no warning. No notice. Just unanswered emails, unanswered calls and, eventually, the discovery that the company had entered liquidation on November 17.

The firm is understood to have debts exceeding £850,000, leaving Carl, and potentially many others, facing slim chances of recovering anything.

The knock-on effects were immediate. The popular Santa’s Grotto at Candy Cane Lane was cancelled this year. The energy, time and resources simply weren’t there.

And yet, when I arrived at Coffee Cottage, you wouldn’t have known any of that.

I was greeted by friendly staff, a warm, welcoming café and the comforting glow of a log burner.

After walking the dog, it was the perfect place to stop - dog friendly, quick service, a cracking sausage bap and coffee, and a space that felt genuinely homely.

Wooden features, simple touches, no fuss.

In all honesty, it didn’t feel like the Isle of Man. And I mean that in the best possible way.

It felt like one of those rural cafés you stumble across on a walking holiday and never forget. A place you make a point of returning to.

That’s why stories like this matter.

When we talk about supporting local, this is what it looks like.

Independent businesses, quietly getting on with it, even when circumstances outside their control threaten to knock the wind out of them.

Credit to Carl and his team, not just for keeping the doors open, but for doing so with warmth, pride and quality intact.

I’ll be back. And I hope plenty of others will be too.