Hard Times was in the beginning a club that had various locations around Leeds. The man who started it all was Steve Raine along with his girlfriend Donna Skinner and Peter Jenkinson.
Aside from the club there was a label called Hard Times The Label which mainly focused on American garage. Hard Times was used for ©+℗ credits in this time.
The label was revived as Hard Times in 2023 (co-owner: Stuart Forsyth).