We trust this newsletter finds you well and enjoying this amazing Autumn weather, amongst an extremely difficult time during the COVID-19 lockdown. We all should feel very fortunate to be living in this wonderful country and to have escaped the extreme health crisis many other countries have experienced.
With the easing of restrictions this weekend and businesses starting to open up slowly allowing the economy to rebound – we are certainly seeing more energy and vibrancy within the town which is very positive but it is clear, there is still no travel for leisure purposes. With regional holidays not permitted, it is time to focus on our immediate surrounds, buy and shop local and support those businesses that have supported you. Position your business to best support our local market, and lets’ hope we can welcome visitors again in the not too distant future.
The Chamber has been restricted during this timeframe not being able to hold monthly meetings but be rest assured we have been working behind the scenes – keeping abreast of the developments with regular Zoom meetings with the other chambers in Eurobodalla alongside the ESC and planning and discussing what is required for us to bounce back once restrictions have been lifted. Also we were online a few weeks ago for a Tele Town Hall Event involving the NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet and Business NSW which came away with some interesting data which was very positive, that we feel necessary to share.
- Three quarters of business owners believe their operations will survive the COVID-19 crisis (3,000 chamber members were surveyed on the line from across NSW, including the Capital and Far South Coast regions).
- Asked whether they believe that their business would survive the current crisis, 72 per cent of respondents answered yes, while another 23 per cent said they were unsure. Just 5 per cent believed their business would be forced to close.
“These are very high numbers considering the impact the virus and the restrictions have had on businesses of all types and in all locations,” said Adam Zarth, Executive Director, Capital Far South Coast. “The optimism and ‘can do’ attitude of business owners and their employees has never surprised me; however, this has been the ultimate test of their endurance and perseverance,” Mr Zarth said.
“The Treasurer too was heartened by these figures, and by the grit and resilience being shown by the business operators on the call – their determination to continue operations, paying their staff and supporting their communities was there for all to hear and see.”
“Of course, the big challenge for businesses will be in coming months when our way of life slowly starts to return to a new normal and the harsh reality of their true financial position becomes clear after government subsidies end for them and for their customers.”
“The Business NSW has advocated for business owners and their staff to immediately download the COVIDSafe App as it advocates for a staged re-opening of businesses in the short term,” Mr Zarth said.
Appreciating there has been so much documentation coming through over the past few months and it is difficult to know which businesses need what and certainly we are here to assist if required but we have put a list of valuable links (below) together to assist if you require regular updates which you have not been able to assess.
Last but certainly not least – it continues to amaze me the uptake of support for the Chamber/John Holland initiative for the Love the Bay Campaign. Who would have thought, when this was launched in December 2019 what the next 6 months was going to look like? The social media presence is certainly building and we are fortunate to be able to have funded filming and developing wonderful promotional material for numerous businesses, which we have promoted via social media channels and the links are below for those that would like to check out some of the amazing resilient businesses we have in this town.
We look forward to the next chapter and will be in touch as soon as we can see our way clear to hold another chamber meeting.
Useful Links for Business:
- Business Australia Newsletter
- ESC Tourism Newsletter
- Destination Southern NSW
- Phoenix Programme workshops
- Biz Rebuild Mental Health link as they are offering assisting
- Love the Bay Video Series
Yours sincerely,
Alison Miers
President
