Support your local takeaways!

First of all, I think NZ as a whole has done a pretty good job with the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Last week we moved into Level 3, down from Level 4, which was a boon for many businesses in the hospitality industry as they could start serving contact-free takeaway!

Level 3 is essentially Level 4 with some restrictions removed – a key point was the restriction on takeaway food. This led to the now-infamous ‘Level 4 but with KFC’ meme which has proliferated in the NZ blogosphere (thanks Judith Collins). Many people seemed to have taken the meme quite literally, with long lines appearing at KFC and McDonald drive-thrus throughout the country on the first day of Level 3 last week.

Like wow,

I didn’t realise how important fast food was to the average Kiwi!

But this also makes me a little concerned. No, I’m not concerned about the rising obesity rates in this country (ok, actually as a parent I am – but not a topic for this blog). I’m mostly concerned about all the local takeaways and cafes that need your support far more than big, multinational corporations who have survived multiple financial crises (and will survive this one as well).

Level 4 hit us hard, but it hit tourism and hospitality operators even harder. While the operating prospects for tourism businesses are still an open question, innovative and hard working hospitality operators have thrown themselves into setting up takeaway menus and fine-tuning their operations to support delivery and contactless services.

Small, local takeaways need your support.

There’s a little Pizza shop up on Grey Street where I live in Hamilton. They are operated by a small and hard-working group of local business owners. They make THE BEST chicken slingshot pizza (you see – It’s got this secret sauce which is sweet, spicy and.. Uh.. I..err.. Back to the topic!). When Level 4 was announced, I grabbed my last take away from them as they told me they would be shutting down for Level 4. 

Now that it’s Level 3 , they are back on and I’m overjoyed! Unfortunately, Level 4  would have impacted them hard, and without support from the community, we may no longer be able to enjoy awesome chicken slingshot pizza! The same goes for all your favorite cafes, restaurants and outlets!

The COVID-19 crisis will pass, but in the future, imagine not being able to enjoy your favorite scone at your local coffee shop. Imagine not being able to have date night at your favorite restaurant. Imagine not being able to buy your favorite kebabs and chips after a night out in town.

There is an economic argument to be made to support local businesses as well – whatever monies you pay to local businesses are spent locally, further bolstering the local economy with fresh cash moving through its veins. As I have said before, the more we spend on local businesses, the more cash we pump into the local economy, the faster we will be able to recover from this recession.

So yeah,

The next time you are craving chips or fried chicken, hit up your local takeaway. Not only will you be helping the local economy, you will be keeping your money out of the pocket of some greedy multinational corporation as well!