DoorDash relief fund expands to help out in NZ

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Gisborne restaurants impacted by natural disasters can now apply for funding through the DoorDash Restaurant Disaster Relief Fund.

A week after launching in Auckland, on-demand delivery platform DoorDash is expanding its disaster relief fund to New Zealand, supporting small businesses across the country who have been adversely impacted by natural disasters.

The fund kicked off in the United States in October 2021, and was created to help small businesses get back on their feet.

Funds can be used for a variety of expenses, including payroll for existing employees, developing a product or service, sourcing or expanding inventory, marketing and advertising, and general operating expenses like utilities or rent.

The fund, run in partnership with the Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN), is providing 100 NZ$16,000 grants this year, with merchants across New Zealand, Australia and Canada now eligible.

“This is all about offering help to those in our community that need it most,” DoorDash’s general manager for New Zealand, Australia and Canada, Rebecca Burrows, said.

To apply for relief, restaurants must have between one and three brick and mortar locations, fewer than 50 employees per location, have been open for at least six months, and have been impacted by a Civil Defence or Government declared natural disaster.

The 2023 funding cycles will take place across three rounds — July 6 - September 30; October 3 - December 31 and January 3 - March 29, 2024.

To learn more and apply, visit www.genglobal.org/grants/restaurant-relief.

■ Grants are US$10,000, with current conversion rates to approximately NZ$16,000. Conversion rates are subject to change.