One of the sectors that has been impacted severely by COVID-19 is the hospitality sector.

Cafes and restaurants operating in CBD have had the most drastic impact. Job Keeper has definitely provided much needed relief. Landlords have also provided some relaxation in terms of their leases. The situation is still tough though and there will be visible changes within the sector.

Within CBDs, Melbourne has been the most significantly impacted and a lot of restaurants & cafes have chosen to close their doors until the lockdown is lifted. In Sydney the situation is slightly better. We have seen 65% of restaurants & cafes opening their doors. These restaurants are seeing about 20-40% of volumes compared to their pre-COVID numbers.

In order to survive, a lot of these restaurant partners have gone on to operate at a skeleton staff and are trying their best to ride out the crisis.

So, what will hospitality look like in a post COVID world?

Prices of food and drinks are likely to go up, especially in CBDs. Lower volumes and higher costs mean it is likely that we might see an increase of 10-15% in prices for these restaurants to survive.
Some restaurants will choose to move out of the CBDs into suburbs. Volumes in suburbs have held even during this crisis - some strong operators have actually seen an increase in volumes.
Contactless ordering through digital platforms will become the norm; restaurants will look to keep their communities safe and minimise contact where possible.
Increase in restaurants managing their own delivery; a lot of restaurants will try to take back control and reduce reliance on 3rd party delivery apps.

What can we do to support our favorite cafes and restaurants in the CBD to help them ride out this crisis?

Start easing back to work - while it might still not be possible for all of us to safely return back to work, we should start having critical meetings at our CBD offices while taking all possible safety precautions like wearing masks, maintaining social distances and attending remotely if we are not feeling well or unsure of the history of people that we have come in close contact with over the past few days
Whenever, we are in the CBD, trying to visit our favorite cafes and restaurants and support them by buying lunches, coffees, or generally just a friendly chat and encouraging them to hang in there and continue to fight for survival
If we don’t feel comfortable visiting the CBD, you can still support your favorite CBD restaurants and cafes by donating virtual coffees and meals through Hey You - these virtual food items or drink items allow the CBD cafes with some much needed cash flow while not requiring them to actually prepare the items

All in all, it is definitely a tough time especially for our restaurant partners in Victoria. Thankfully there has been some positive news on the vaccine - once confidence is restored, things would bounce back very quickly. In the meantime, lets try and support our favourite restaurants and cafes with visits, lunches, coffees and most importantly encouraging words - they have fought hard to survive so far, we can’t let them give up just yet !

Uzair Moosa - CEO of Hey You