Nervous retailers eye darker days
Alert level 2 shock after golden run since the end of first lockdown
Hawke’s Bay retailers have had 100 golden days since Covid-19 was eliminated in the community in New Zealand.
But the confidence of that impressive run turned to immediate nerves as community transmission was confirmed on Tuesday night.
When New Zealand entered level 2 in May Alexander’s Menswear owner Graham Bell and Caravan clothing store manager Sandi Reefman were excited to be back in their shops doing what they do best.
Since then, they both say business has been amazing.
“It’s been fantastic, people are really supporting New Zealand and Napier,” Reefman said.
“It’s been quite interesting coming from ‘what’s going to happen, what are we going to do next, the end is near’ to something quite amazing,” Bell said.
The recent move back to level 2 and uncertainty of the Covid-19 situation, however, has them nervous.
Business Hawke’s Bay CEO Carolyn Neville said the business community “should prepare for the worst and hope for the best”.
Reefman said businesses in Napier have acted very quickly. Both have hand sanitiser and contact tracing measures in place.
Bell in particular said yesterday he feels “very nervous” at the moment and wants more clarity and information from the Government that has left his livelihood in limbo. “We want simplicity and clarity so we know exactly where we stand, where we are going and a plan for how we are going to come out of this.
“We need as a business community, and for all parts of the community, to know the steps that will be put in place so we can plan accordingly for our lives going forward.”
Reefman said the announcement was a shock to everybody but businesses will just need to re-adjust again.
She said she is worried about the future but “it’s the new normal”.
“We will get through it. We got through it the first time and we will get through it again. It’s the unknown that is uneasy for a lot of people.”
Neville said at level 2 there will be some impact on retail and personal services but up until Monday the business and commercial sector in Hawke’s Bay had been doing well.
While businesses should feel more prepared as they have previously been at level 2, owners “have been through a lot since lockdown in March”.
“They could do with a break and some respite from the stress. Mental health, wellbeing and resilience of business owners and their teams is of concern.
“Of course we recognise that the health response must come first, but Covid-19 is also having a profound impact on economies here in New Zealand and around the world.
The best case scenario for the business sector is a return to level 1, but only if it is safe to do so, Neville said. “We don’t know if that is possible or likely.”