Victoria’s tourism sector faces limitations to restoration

A new report examining the dual effects of bush fires followed by the pandemic on the tourism sector in Victoria looks forward to a challenging future.

The crisis weighed $ 19.5 billion on visitor spending in the Victorian economy in 2020. The report from Victoria University and the Victoria Tourism Industry Council (VTIC) found that the companies surveyed *:

• Two thirds lost between 75% and 100% of their income
• In bushfire-hit areas, business insurance has increased by as much as 400%, making it unaffordable for many
• Almost half of the owners had mental health problems and had limited or reluctant access to health services
• Almost half of casual workers were made permanent and many found more secure jobs, exacerbating the seasonal shortage of skilled workers in the regional tourism sector, which is trying to recover
• Only 30% are confident that they will recruit sufficiently skilled workers in the next 12 months
• 15% were directly affected by the bush fires; However, two-thirds say their income was affected and 89% received government support.

The lead researcher Dr. Joanne Pyke, director of the School of Visitor Economics at Victoria University, said the majority of those affected by the double crisis are having problems.

“The industry is emotionally, financially and physically exhausted,” she said. “At the same time, they need to rebuild their businesses quickly, often without the finances, support, and manpower they need to do it.”

Felicia Mariani, CEO of the Victoria Tourism Industry Council, said Victoria needed to lead the way in implementing strategies to address current vulnerabilities in the tourism system and increase resilience to future crises.

“Our sector is not only trying to recover from the double crises of the past year. We also want to build resilience and plan another inevitable crisis, ”said Ms. Mariani. “The sector was already facing the challenge of attracting enough skilled seasonal workers, and COVID has exacerbated this problem by stopping our supply of backpackers, students and other workers overseas. This lack of human resources is definitely affecting the sector’s ability and pace to recover. “

Dr. Pyke said governments need to put in place targeted strategies to help the industry recover as many measures were not helpful in the Victorian context.

“Funding cheap airfare to bring tourists to other states has negatively impacted the recovery of Victoria tourism, which relies heavily on people traveling within the state to make up for the overseas tourist deficit,” she said. “But perhaps one of the most important problems is the dramatic increase in business insurance costs in bushfire areas. Organizations cannot plan for the next crisis or build resilience if they are not sure they can fund their recovery from a disaster. “

The report showed that those who received training in risk management, leadership, contingency and continuity planning as part of the VTIC accreditation process do much better and feel more prepared for the next crisis. Those who had previously experienced disasters like bushfires were more likely to have risk management plans in place and were in a better position to recover.

The report “Strengthening the Resilience of Tourism Destinations to Disasters” underlines the need for political measures by the federal and state governments to:

• Help address seasonal labor shortages and the barriers to attracting more labor such as: B. the high cost of accommodation in tourist areas
• Make sure businesses have access to affordable insurance so they can rebuild after bushfires, floods, drought, and other natural disasters
• Moving to a low carbon economy to try to reduce the frequency and severity of natural disasters
• Provide appropriate mental health services in regional communities that meet the needs of a business world and remove barriers to entry
• Encourage companies to take accredited training in risk management, leadership, contingency and continuity planning
• Helping operators innovate and develop online business and marketing skills to help more companies keep operating in a crisis
• Engage cross-border communities to ensure workable solutions if future lockdowns are required.

Pizzini Wines has a long history of innovation and resilience planning. The family-run company started selling wine online in 2004 and was well positioned to step up its online marketing during the COVID crisis. But their innovation didn’t end there.

“During the high season in January, fires closed the King Valley to tourists for five weeks, just as we were reopening the hit COVID. We knew we had to act quickly, ”said Natalie Pizzini.

After the winery basement door and cooking school along with the second store of a hotel in Whitfield town closed, the team took their hands-on gnocchi cooking classes online.

“We sent packages with the ingredients and the wines to match, and then anyone could join through Zoom to take the class,” she said. “It became a way for friends and family members isolated in lockdown to connect and do something together. It was really something special for our customers and an important income for us during the COVID. “

The cooking classes and online marketing helped keep the pizzini afloat. But when the pandemic hit, they started storing Cole’s canned sparkling wine, which helped make a profit by the end of 2020. The family now faces challenges with the supply of wine because the grapes are smoky. Attract workers; and build resilience for the next crisis.

“It’s not about if, but when,” said Ms. Pizzini. “We are working on building greater resilience, especially against bush fires, not just for our company, but for the entire region.”

The Bright Brewery opened a production brewery three years ago to bolster its resilience by having a tourism-independent source of income in case bushfires inevitably broke out. However, owner Scott Brandon said the manufacturing facility is still growing and will be largely funded by revenue from the microbrewery restaurant.

“The fires, followed by COVID, resulted in us losing 80% of our income for that period,” said Brandon. “But JobKeeper has allowed us to keep most of our employees.”

Record numbers of tourists have been to Bright in the past six months, but Mr Brandon said he was struggling to fill his shop.

“Sometimes we had to close half of our venue because we couldn’t find enough staff,” said Brandon. “We have tourists in line and urgently need to make up for our lost income. But a lack of overseas working holiday visitors; Hospitality workers move to safer jobs outside of the sector; and the lack of affordable housing all make it difficult to attract employees. “

He said affordable housing is a big problem in Bright. “Many people in Melbourne have been looking for a tree change, either to move here or to buy a vacation home, and there is currently little affordable housing. Several potential employees have taken jobs to retire after failing to find affordable housing. “

* The survey responded to 323 Victorian tourism companies.

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