Hospitality

The first Matariki long weekend provided a welcome lift for the hospitality sector, according to Worldline data.

Auckland’s city centre will come alive with food, nostalgia and fine dining to celebrate Restaurant Month from 1 – 31 August.

Hospitality New Zealand is calling for MPs to send a private member’s bill repealing Easter trading restrictions to a select committee so the industry can have its say on whether to stay open or not.

The relatively new Fable brand and Hotel Britomart, as well as vineyard accommodation and TOP 10 holiday parks, are among the finalists in the Lion Hospitality Awards for Excellence 2022.

A new food, wine and design festival called INDULGE will light up Auckland’s Wynyard Point and Jellicoe Harbour in March 2023.

The hospitality industry is bouncing back from downtime caused by Covid, according to a Restaurant Association survey of members for the month of May.

More than 120 events and pop-ups will take place during Visa Wellington On A Plate, on during the month of August.

For the month of May, participating Auckland restaurants and bars will be celebrating the Eat, Drink, Love Ponsonby 2022.

Seasonally adjusted debit and credit card spending rose by $551m or 7% to $8.1bn in April 2022 compared with the previous month, according to Stats NZ.

The Shakespeare Hotel, Restaurant and Bar in Auckland celebrating its 125th birthday with a ticketed ‘Shakespeare 125’ event to be held this Saturday.

The New Zealand Hospitality Conference will return to Grand Millennium Auckland on 26-27 July.

Hospitality sales in March 2022 dropped 6.6% and job growth fell 11% compared to the same month last year due to Covid-19 challenges, Xero’s Small Business Index for March 2022 found.

Entries are now open for the 24th annual Hospitality Awards for Excellence, which will be held in person for the first time in three years.

Consumer spending in hospitality over the week leading up to Easter Monday reached $202.8m, bucking a 23% downward trend over the last eight months.

The business events and hospitality sectors have welcomed the ditching of capacity limits in time for the important Easter and school holidays.

Bars, cafes, and restaurants will be able to fill up again with capacity and seating rules lifted, says Chris Hipkins.

Card spending in hospitality fell to $891m in March 2022, down by 14.3% or $149m compared to the same month last year, according to Stats NZ.

Driving out poor employers, providing decent work, and changing the image of the industry are the major recommendations from research into NZ hospitality.

Spending in the hospitality sector increased steadily during March reaching almost $700m, according to new data by Worldline.

Hospitality businesses continue to struggle at the hands of the government’s decision to keep the country in the red setting, say industry players.

Despite the welcome news, some say capacity changes to venue caps remain a pain point.

Discover New Zealand’s hospitality industry in this 360-degree virtual reality experience, courtesy of Go with Tourism.

The government’s amended Covid Support Payment is a “victory” for the hospitality sector, says Hospitality New Zealand.

Hospitality New Zealand says the shift to phase 3 of the Omicron response is a relief and will help the sector recover and keep staff in jobs.

The government’s Covid Support Payment scheme unveiled on Monday will not cover businesses that experienced poor trade in January, says Hospitality New Zealand.

Hospitality operators are battling to stay open – and afloat – after Covid cases force widespread closures at the resort.

The worst of times are not over for the hospitality, events and accommodation industry with any recovery as far off as spring, says former BNZ chief economist Tony Alexander.

The Restaurant Associating is urging the public to dine out as hospitality revenues continue to fall, saying Government modelling is breeding fear into the public.

A new ice lounge attraction has opened its doors at Queenstown’s Upper Village.

A restaurant in Christchurch has been fined $20,000 by WorkSafe New Zealand for failing to comply with Covid-19 requirements.

Hospitality New Zealand says Auckland’s move to orange under the Covid traffic light system will come too late for some businesses.

More than 232,000 jobs are dependent on New Zealand’s hospitality sector, 137,000 of them directly, according to a new report.

Hotel Grand Windsor, Fable Dunedin, The Hotel Britomart and Wharekauhau Country Estate all picked up gongs.

Nelson City Council will continue rent relief for outdoor dining, street stallholders and concession holders until the end of March 2022.

The Restaurant Association says it needs more guidance on how vaccine passports will work in a business setting.

Hospitality venues and accommodation operators will this week start a campaign to re-open their doors.

The easing of Auckland’s lockdown restrictions is inconsistent, say business groups.

Hospitality New Zealand will hold its 2021 Lion Hospitality Awards for Excellence event online this year on 23 November due to Covid restrictions.

The inability of restaurants to open before step 3 of Covid-19 alert level 3 is disappointing for the industry, says the Restaurant Association.

Hospitality New Zealand has launched a digital gift card for use in hospitality venues across the country.

The Green Party hopes to enable tenants and landlords to backdate any adjustments in rent due during Covid-19 alert levels 3 and 4 under commercial leases to cover the full lockdown period.

Moa Tap Room in Marlborough has won the beer tourism accolade at the 2021 New Zealand Beer Awards.

An international survey shows that 66% of adults agree that social and mental wellbeing was negatively impacted by the closure of hospitality venues, says Hospitality New Zealand.

The Help for Hospo fund is supporting hospitality workers in need, distributing privately donated funds to those seeking additional help beyond the wage subsidy and other means.

Hospitality New Zealand says the “industry’s fury is growing” with the government for not providing legal cover over vaccine certificates.

Good Spirits Hospitality will open a new high-end English Ale House after starting a lease at the Auckland Viaduct.

Hospitality businesses are “on the brink” with casualties expected in the lockdown extension, say industry groups.

The 2021 Hospitality Awards for Excellence will be held on 23 November at Auckland Museum, as long as the city is at Covid-19 alert level 1.

Hospitality New Zealand and Retail New Zealand say they have concerns about the government’s request for retail workers to get Covid-19 tests.

Level 3 makes little difference for most operators but the increase in indoor numbers to 100 for level 2 areas is welcomed.