Opinion: Don't let funding cuts hurt Hawke's Bay tourism industry

Louise and Bruce Stowbart are co-owners of Birdwoods, Havelock North. Photo / File

Having just sat down at the end of a day in the life of a tourism/hospitality business, I feel compelled to add to the discussion regarding Hawke's Bay Regional Council's proposal to cut funding to the tourism Industry by 50 per cent over the next three years.

I suspect I will echo the sentiments of many other businesses in the Bay.

We have not chosen an easy industry to be part of – our hours are incredibly long, many of us are open seven days a week, with no breaks in the peak seasons, school holidays or long weekends. We struggle with seasonality and incredibly slim profit margins.

We are also prone to the demands of an ever critical and very discerning public - think Trip Advisor, which can be brutal. What other industry is subject to individual opinions in such a public forum?

However, we have chosen to be part of this exciting, challenging and dynamic industry because we love looking after our community, friends, family, locals, visitors and tourists of every age group. We are incredibly proud to showcase our beautiful region in the best way we know how. We live, give and work here too.

As ratepayers, over the past three years each of us has contributed $26 per year to assisting the tourism industry in Hawke's Bay. (That's about three glasses of wine a year at a restaurant, or six cups of coffee).

I believe we have all derived excellent value from this very modest investment. Last year saw $630 million spent by visitors in Hawke's Bay – an increase of 7.9 per cent on the previous year.

The HBRC funding allocation to Hawke's Bay Tourism underpins a much broader economic benefit for us all.

Tourism touches almost every single one of us who lives here. In our own Birdwoods business, the knock-on effect is huge, from the food-supply companies that deliver daily, the fruit, vegetable and meat suppliers, the cleaning, laundry, packaging and courier businesses, let alone the builders, electricians, council and waste-management people – the list is endless and I name but a few.

As for staffing – tourism and hospitality is one of the few industries that offer entry-level jobs for school students and young people of Hawke's Bay.

Statistics show we currently employ 6200 people in this industry, and yes, the pay is not great, but as said, margins are slim. It gives young people a start and teaches them a strong work ethic. It is these youngsters who now want to return to the Bay 10 years after leaving school to come and live here and bring up their young families.

They did not want to in the past because we were considered a backwater, off the track region with limited things to do, very few jobs and certainly not the attractions we have now.

Just consider how many hospitality businesses have opened in the past three years – many run by young, entrepreneurial smart people who enjoy the new culture that the Bay has to offer. Much of it involves cycling, events, accommodation, music, dramatic arts, good food and fine wines. This has not happened by accident.

Much of this has been the result of having a strong and effective local tourism authority that drives people to Hawke's Bay by offering the above and keeping us in business.

It is only in the past five years that we finally feel we have a very professional regional dedicated body that is representing all of us, directly or indirectly.

It has helped give business owners the confidence to invest further in our communities and those visitors that we are fortunate to have visit our region.

Therefore to retain the current funding model is entirely fair and the only truly equitable way to make sure the impetus of this industry does not slow down.

To cut it drastically will surely be a very short-sighted decision by the HBRC councillors. They need to listen to what is being said by the people on the ground or they risk losing our votes.

Every regional tourism authority in New Zealand is partially funded by its ratepayers and currently all are requesting an increase in funds or wanting to maintain a status quo.

Hawke's Bay is the only region that could lose funding.

Nationally this is a highly competitive arena and if we are not supported locally we will all feel the effects as other regions take up our market share.

Please do not let this happen.

Louise Stobart – Bruce and Louise Stobart are co-owners of Birdwoods, Havelock North.