Although her financial woes are merely a sub-plot as the soap pursues other major issues, it will only be a matter of time before Zainab's situation comes to the fore. However, if Zainab was a real businesswoman and not just a fictional character what options would be available to extract her from such a dire financial situation? Unfortunately, there is no easy answer as it would depend upon several key factors relating to her business and also her own circumstances.

First, Zainab must confront the issue head on and make an honest appraisal of hers and the Post Office's finances. Preferably, she should not keep it to herself but enlist the help of debt experts and perhaps involve her nearest and dearest. Sharing the terrible burden is the first step to overcoming it.

Next she could consider a debt consolidation loan. However, as you would expect business debt consolidation is more complicated than the personal variety. Thankfully, there are many specialist companies that offer advice and they will appraise the situation and come up with the best solution, although dependent upon factors currently affecting the business.

Rather than a corporate debt consolidation loan they may recommend that rescheduling the debt is the best option. That would involve refinancing revolving, term, and equipment loans and structuring the repayments in line with the business cash flow, enabling Zainab to better plan the way she runs the Post Office.

Alternatively, they may indeed agree that a corporate is the best way for Zainab to extract herself from her financial difficulties. Settling with a number of creditors and replacing assorted payments to them with one convenient monthly payment will significantly reduce Zainab's administrative burden. It will also go some way to restoring good working relationships with her suppliers, which have become strained of late due to her making late payments to them, or even missing payments altogether!

However, whatever solution real life businesses would be able come up with you can be sure it won't be that straight forward in soap-land, where there is bound to be some twist in an otherwise straightforward plot. So, while Dot Cotton is living in fear of the young thugs that are terrorising her in her own home and Ronnie decides whether there is any future in her relationship with Jack, Zainab will doubtless come up with some bizarre way of overcoming her debt problems.

Thank goodness it's only fiction!