The steps we are taking to give our region a brighter, better future

It’s an odd thing, this instant recession. During the global financial crisis, I worked for Towncentre Taupo¯ and witnessed first-hand the slow and sustained retraction of our economy. It was, in many ways, death by a thousand cuts. There was no big bang, just a gradual, steady decline in business; followed by a slow and steady rebuild and recovery. It took about seven years for our economy in terms of GDP, employment and other key indicators, to get back to pre-GFC levels. Fast forward 10 years, and we find ourselves back in a recession but this time a hard-hitting and instant impact. For some, the immediate effects have been minimal.

For others, it is already quite severe. And whilst our district has been wonderfully busy over the past few weeks as we moved to alert level 1, economists are predicting the hard times are still coming.

That said, we joke that economists have predicted eleven of the last three recessions! So what to believe?

Our role as the economic development agency for the Taupo¯ District is to foster and support sustained economic growth, so that all who live here can thrive. In recent times, this has focused on attracting new business and industry; and supporting our existing businesses to grow and expand — creating new jobs and therefore growing the economy.

But then along came Covid-19, and we immediately switched into “survival” mode. We stepped up and supported hundreds of local business owners (for free), helping them navigate the various government support mechanisms, develop continuity plans, revise cashflow projections, identify financing opportunities . . . and then helped them figure out how to reopen within the rules when the time came.

The last few weeks have all been about the “revive” phase. Helping breathe life back into our retail precincts across the district, welcoming visitors who have come in their thousands to enjoy a minibreak, supporting our construction and manufacturing sectors to scale back up to full production, and ensuring no one gets left behind as we turn the switch back on.

And now, we look to the “thrive” phase. We’re balancing the forecasts and predictions with what we’re seeing and experiencing on the ground to draw conclusions about what may lay ahead. We’re developing a roadmap with future focused leaders, who care deeply about this district and our people, to reimagine what we could be in 10 or 20 years time. We’re planning for the worst and hoping for the best. Creating employment and education pathways and opportunities for our locals. And we’re fighting to ensure the Taupo¯ District gets its fair share of support from central government to aid in our economic recovery.

My plea to you all as we navigate these challenging times ahead is to shop local. We need to keep local money flowing through our community to offset the many millions lost.

This money needs to keep flowing in the months to come — so please choose a local supplier, provider, or retailer. You are literally keeping a local in a job!