Business View Oceania - Oct 2023

16 BUSINESS VIEW OCEANIA VOLUME 5, ISSUE 10 I f it’s been said once, it’s been said a thousand times: the lockdown and border closures of Covid-19 inflicted the hardest hits and presented the biggest challenges the New Zealand Hospitality sector has ever faced. But with that all firmly in the rear-vision mirror, the industry is now faced with a challenge that could have longer-term ramifications than any threatened by those dark days. There’s no doubt the industry has bounced back – and bounced back well. Many hospitality and accommodation operators defied the odds, with fears of widespread failures thankfully not as bad as predicted, though some great businesses and excellent people were lost to our industry. That the damage was not worse is down simply and purely to the resilience and bloody-mindedness of everyone involved – employers, employees, and suppliers alike. Thanks to them, the recovery has been nothing short of remarkable, considering our borders were shut to our international visitor lifeblood for so long, and there is now a general positivity among operators despite the pressure coming on businesses in the cost-of-living crisis. Many are focused on what is in their control and will deal with what isn’t as and when they need to. The industry is certainly looking forward to the coming summer, our traditional busy period, to continue the recovery and ty g