| 17 Eastern Bay of Plenty Business Chamber REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Karen Phelps Success stories bode well for future Whakatane Mill, which employs several hundred people, has been able to turn its business around. Eastern Bay of Plenty has seen its share of challenges hit the business community in recent years including the impacts of Covid-19 and the Whakaari disaster. This has resulted in businesses thriving and struggling in equal measure, says Eastern Bay of Plenty Chamber of Commerce general manager Andrew Watson. But significant success stories pave the way forward to a bright future including Whakatane Mill, which employs several hundred people, that has been able to turn its business around from imminent closure to growth. New owners are investing in the mill upgrading plant and equipment. “At the time Karl Gradon, then president of Eastern Bay of Plenty Chamber of Commerce, did quite a lot of work with the mill to look at alternatives to closing it down. “The people of the town and the previous owners were also keen for it to stay open. Now the mill is doing amazing stuff and putting a lot back into the community via grants and sponsorships,” says Andrew. Staff shortages have been the biggest hindrance for many businesses and Covid-19 regulations, which meant if someone became infected they and their family had to isolate, have been particularly hard on smaller, family owned enterprises. Andrew says at one stage it was not uncommon to see closed signs on business doors. While most are now in recovery mode it continues to be tough times for many, he says. As the region features many agricultural and horticultural businesses this has seen the staff shortages exacerbated. “We can now start to get those important overseas workers but many businesses may have already missed their opportunity for this season due to when the borders reopened. “We are also seeing people going overseas and taking holidays after the closed borders and a little bit of a brain drain.” Andrew says the Eastern Bay of Plenty tends to be resilient: “When times get tough people tend to collaborate more and we are seeing a lot of business looking at how they can do things differently, especially with regards to trading online. So even small retail stores have developed websites and are starting to do more online trading to supplement their bricks and mortar stores,” he says. Eastern Bay of Plenty Chamber of Commerce has been working with Tauranga Business Chamber and MBIE regarding the digital boost programme, running free courses. Around 30 businesses in Whakatane alone have signed up for the programme and Andrew says feedback has been extremely positive. The programme is open to all businesses – not just those that are a member of the chamber. Eastern Bay of Plenty Chamber of Commerce is also involved in the Regional Business Partner Network in conjunction with MBIE and Callaghan Innovation. “This is to assist businesses that are trading successfully and want to take the next step but are not sure how. If businesses meet the criteria we can help them with co-funding to work with a relevant service provider, for example an accountant to help them understand their finance, business mentors and digital marketing experts etc. It’s been very successful and Eastern Bay of Plenty Chamber of Commerce employs someone full time to work on this initiative.” Eastern Bay of Plenty Chamber of Commerce will also soon be calling for entries to its biannual Business Excellence Awards, which showcase the great businesses in the region. “It’s one of the premier events in the Eastern Bay of Plenty business calendar. The chamber runs this in conjunction with Horizon Energy Group and it helps businesses to learn, benchmark and showcase what they do.” Based in Whakatane, Eastern Bay of Plenty Chamber of Commerce assists businesses in the entire region to connect with the support, advocacy and opportunities they need to thrive. It also advocates on behalf of the business community to both local and national government on issues of importance. Andrew says the future for the region looks positive: “There are a lot of businesses out there definitely keen to take the next step and employ more people and grow their business. That indicates there is a certain business confidence in Eastern Bay of Plenty.” “We can now start to get those important overseas workers but many businesses may have already missed their opportunity for this season due to when the borders reopened.” Andrew Watson Eastern Bay of Plenty has seen its share of challenges hit the business community in recent years including the Whakaari disaster.
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