The hospitality industry is facing the biggest economic threat since WWII, says the Jersey Hospitality Association’s Simon Soar. Businesses are going to have to think on their feet, be more flexible than ever, and find new ways to deliver a service.
‘What can I say? The hospitality industry has never seen anything like this. Never. I’ve heard it said that the last time our industry faced this kind of economic threat was the Occupation – that’s the scale of the problem we’re facing.
‘The financial crash of 2008 did nothing to our industry compared to this. We’ll be feeling the economic impact of coronavirus for years.
‘With limitations on overseas travel, our first thought was to do everything we could to encourage people to support their local hospitality industry. We wanted to launch a #lovelocal campaign to promote staycations and encourage islanders to re-discover what Jersey has to offer.
‘However, within days the situation has changed and we’re now having to think about this in a different way. There are concerns about social distancing and people wanting to avoid public spaces more, so a different angle needs to be adopted.
‘The safety and wellbeing of customers and hospitality staff has to be the biggest priority. This means that businesses are going to have to adapt, and so are customers. I’m already seeing restaurants offering takeaway services, and takeaways offering deliveries when they haven’t previously. Some venues are changing their floor plans to provide more spacing and allow people to still dine out but in less of a confined space. Hospitality businesses are going to have to think on their feet, be more flexible than ever, and find new ways to offer a service.
‘We need islanders to support these changes, too. There are some small steps people can take to support their local establishments. If you don’t feel comfortable going out, consider ordering takeout and delivery, or maybe buy gift cards which can be redeemed when the worst of this blows over.
‘Just last week we enjoyed our AGM. We announced financial stability for the first time in a long time. We achieved a lot of the things we set out to do in 2019 – it was a positive year. What a difference a few days can make.
‘There’s no telling when the worst will pass but when it does, we really hope that islanders will be able to get behind the industry with all their support.’