We spoke to heartbroken regulars of Stirchley's Morrisons Café - this closure cuts deep

The Morrisons café in Stirchley will close its doors for good, one of dozens closing nationwide as the supermarket chain cuts back on services deemed no longer financially viable.

Across the UK, more than 50 cafés, 35 meat and fish counters, and several convenience stores are shutting down. While Morrisons insists most affected staff will be offered alternative roles, up to 365 jobs remain at risk.

Watch the video for the full report.

For regular customers, the loss of the café is about more than just food and drink—it’s about community. Many shoppers saw it as a familiar meeting spot, a place to chat, relax, or take a break during their weekly shop. Now, that space is gone.

Read more: Morrisons closures: The Birmingham stores and cafes set to close, including in Stirchley and Edgbaston

“It’s a shame,” said one shopper outside the Stirchley store. “It’s a local community around here, and people use the café as a way of getting out of the house and meeting others.”

Another shopper added, “A lot of people come in specifically to use the café as well as do their shopping. It’ll be a major inconvenience for them.”

The Stirchley closure is part of a broader shift. In addition to this café, Morrisons is also closing its Market Kitchen in Edgbaston, the café in Solihull, and a convenience store in Great Barr. The company argues that fewer people are using these services, making them too costly to maintain. While some spaces may be taken over by other retailers, locals remain sceptical.

“In places like this, the café isn’t just a café,” one resident noted. “It’s a quiet corner for pensioners, a break for parents, or even a regular part of someone’s routine.”

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Reactions to the closure have been mixed. Some understand the financial reasoning but question the timing. “It seems like a knee-jerk reaction to the current economic climate,” said one shopper. “Maybe they should have waited a bit longer to see if things improved.”

Others are worried about what might come next. With supermarkets increasingly focusing on efficiency—quicker trips, more self-checkouts, fewer reasons to linger—many wonder what the future holds. “Once you start taking things away, it can be hard to bring them back,” said another shopper.

As Morrisons tightens its belt, communities like Stirchley are left weighing the true cost—not just in jobs, but in the fading sense of connection these spaces once provided.