Local Focus: Businesses nervous about level 3: 'Any one industry or business could be responsible for reverting back'

The streets of Rotorua are virtually empty but not for much longer. Next week's move to Level 3 allows some local businesses to resume trading, and for many it can't come soon enough.

"We're a tourist-heavy city, an international tourist-heavy city," said Ricky Brackfield, from Laundry Masters, Rotorua. "Yeah we get lots of domestic tourists but our mainstay is international tourists. They're the ones that bring in the money, the higher value money - they do a lot of spending and they literally disappeared. So yeah, it's hit Rotorua massively, there will be huge layoffs in Rotorua."

"Obviously we're hoping that domestic travellers start travelling domestically," he said. "But at best, I reckon that was only 40 per cent of our market, so even if we got back to that level, that's still only 40 per cent of what we had."

Bringing that revenue back will require significant innovation, with technology playing a key role. Brackfield's business is benefiting from the use of an international app, called CleanCloud.

"It's like UberEats [or] any of those ones," he said. "You just download the app, put in your credit card details, say you've got a pick-up and what it is.

"Generally we've got about three vehicles on the road a day anyway, so we just work that out among our drivers."

Greg Brown, owner of the Pig and Whistle Restaurant and Capers Cafe, has also been utilising digital platforms.

"We started building a website during level 2, so prior to level 3, so we've got some of that functionality up and running," he said.

"We started offering food box deliveries as of Saturday morning. Like any new business, we've got to get a feel for where the demand is what the price-points are, how we're going to run it. Hopefully that will provide a bit of cash."

For some businesses, such as agriculture and forestry company Patchell, level 3 gives them a green light.

"I suppose it's good for us, in that we can start manufacturing," chief executive Brent Whibley said. "I suppose there's also a bit of hesitancy as well because there's a lot of responsibility on us as a team, that we do it right."

"I think the country has done a fantastic job to this point. Any one industry or business could be responsible for reverting back. Whatever we do, we do not want to revert back.

"For us to go from level 4 to level 3, then back to level 4 would be a nightmare, so we don't want to do that."

Despite weathering a tough four weeks, Rotorua business owners are hopeful that, with time, business will return to normal.

"We have to just comply with the rules, I think that is the clear path. There's a lot of uncertainty about some of the rules, what we could and couldn't do," said Whibley.

"This has given us an opportunity to at least start. Yes, we're open for business, yes, we can start manufacturing. The key though is we still want to keep ourselves safe, our family members safe and our staff safe."

But as far as most Rotorua businesses are concerned, international travel is the crucial step to economic recovery.

"It's really hard to see how that's going to happen in a hurry," Brown said. "But our proximity to the Auckland market should give us some good news. In reality, it's too soon to say, but I'm optimistic."

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