'Use it or lose it': Nelson hospitality's warning to absent patrons

Tuesday, 15 February 2022

Nelson Hospitality Association president Ian Williams says many businesses are on their 'last legs' after two years of restricted trading. Video first published in February, 2022.

Nelson hospitality businesses struggling to stay afloat have reached a critical point in the pandemic, with punters being warned: use it or lose it.

The warning comes as a Hospitality New Zealand found that more than half of the country’s hospitality businesses are preparing for insolvency in the next three months.

People scared by the Omicron wave of Covid-19 hitting New Zealand have been staying home in droves since the country entered the red light alert level, Nelson bar and restaurant owners say.

Nelson Hospitality Association president Ian Williams, who owns The Vic and Burger Culture, said the shift to the red light setting in January had effectively ended the summer for bars, restaurants and cafés.

Nelson restaurant operators (from left) Tejas Arn, Ian Williams, Mike Walker, Kim Odendaal from Hospitality NZ, Ben Smith and Colin Lott discuss the state of hospitality in Nelson

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Ian Williams, owner of The Vic Bar in Trafalgar St and President of the Nelson Hospitality Association, says punters need to “use it or lose it” when it comes to hospitality.

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“The impact of summer trade coming to a sudden halt, and all events being cancelled has been disastrous.

“What I hear from bar, café and restaurant owners is that they are now at a critical point of going under, so it’s ‘use it or lose it’ time.”

He was getting regular calls and emails from business owners “in despair”, he said.

They were talking with Nelson Mayor Rachel Reese and local MP Rachel Boyack to try and get local and central government support for businesses, but they also needed people to get out and support the businesses.

“For many owners there is nowhere else to go in terms of loans and extended mortgages after this two-year impact. It’s a very sad and stressful time for our industry, and calls for any government support continues as yet to fall on deaf ears.”

People have been staying home since the country entered the red light alert level, killing cash-flow and crushing hope for already struggling businesses.

East St owner Tejas Arn has been operating as a takeaway only business since the traffic light system began.

Businesses would only start to recover when the traffic light system was dropped, he said.

“Unless we start standing together, some of us will get through, but many won’t.”

People were too scared to get out and visit restaurants and bars, he said.

“It’s hospitality, and it’s looking after people – people are too scared to be looked after.”

Colin Lott from McCashin’s Brewery said they were faced with a double-edged sword, as they also operated brewery tours, so were losing out on tourism as well as restaurant business.

They had got the business to a good point, then were hit with the August lockdown, which meant “cancellation after cancellation”. Then came the traffic lights, and things picked up until the red light arrived, he said.

“Every time the Government changes the rules it scares the heck out of people.”

He urged healthy vaccinated people to carry on their lives as normal.

“You don’t need to be scared.”

Street Food on Washington owner Ben Smith said business disappeared as soon as the red light came in, and he spent his time “waiting for the next curveball”.

At the end of last year he had fit-out a food truck to diversify, but the red light and ensuing spate of event cancellations scuppered that plan.

“They all got canned – and that was my business recovery plan.”

Now he was planning to park it up near his home in Wakefield as part of a food truck co-op to try and get some more takeaway business.

Mike Walker from the Prince Albert Backpackers and Bar said the community had “marched past” the 90 per cent vaccination mark, but seemed to be more scared than ever.

A case linked to their accommodation in early December had forced the business to shut for two weeks, causing the loss of functions and income – while still having to pay staff, he said.

“It’s been pretty bloody brutal.”

On Tuesday, Hospitality NZ reported that a survey of members had found 58 per cent were preparing for insolvency within three months, while half had recorded a loss in turnover of more than 40 per cent.

Government assistance needed to arrive by the end of the month, Hospitality NZ chief executive Julie White said.

“We’ve got through two hard years – but it’s unlikely many will make it through the next two or three months of Omicron.”

The response to Omicron was “devastating”, she said.

“Orange was bearable and there was even some excitement, but the shift to red killed it.

“People are not going out, our cities are empty, and our members are rapidly running out of options.”