What You Can Do Plus Who To Support To Help Local Businesses Survive The Crisis
Streets that are deserted. Shopping malls that are deserted. Restaurants that are deserted.
Reduced foot traffic is wreaking havoc on the F&B industry around the world. Cities have become ghost towns as a result of government-imposed lockdowns or social estrangement.
While practicing restricted movement and social separation is a good idea, it has a significant influence on both large and small F&B enterprises.
Business has plummeted between 30% and 40% in Malaysia, the country with the largest incidence of illnesses in South East Asia, and is likely to drop even further to between 60% and 70% during the restricted travel order period.
While governments should provide financial assistance and other legislative measures, there are ways that we, as individuals, can help our local companies in a safe, logical, and cost-effective manner.
What You Can Do To Help Your Local Businesses
Takeout, pickup, or delivery are all options. We recognize that not everyone can cook (or is good at cooking! ), so these are excellent alternatives to eating out. Many independently owned restaurants and food businesses are increasingly adopting solutions that allow them to continue providing you with contactless takeout, pickups, deliveries, and payments!
Gift cards can be purchased. If you’re lucky enough to be able to cook for yourself at home or prefer not to order food, buying gift cards to your favorite restaurants is a quick way to put money into the business—get the money now, use it later.
Make the most of the bargains. Some places are giving out gift cards worth more than what you buy to first-time customers for food orders (e.g., free deliveries, a rebate on your order, or something similar), and others are giving away gift cards worth more than what you buy!
As a token of your gratitude, here’s a suggestion. Consider tipping the wait staff and delivery personnel a little extra because their income will be affected by the dip in sales, and they’re still going out of their way to serve you. Tips do not benefit the F&B industry as a whole, but they do benefit the people who work in it, and a little can go a long way for them.
Let us all do our part to assist in any manner we can, no matter how tiny.
