Waikato Business News June/July 2023

22 WAIKATO BUSINESS NEWS, JUNE/JULY 2023
Celebrate your business success at the
Hamilton CBD Awards
The annual Hamilton CBD Awards recognises and celebrates
the fabulous businesses based in Hamilton’s central city.
Entries opened this
month and the awards
will continue using
the Love the Centre branding
offering both a public nomination
and business nomination
to enter.
The successful inner-city
campaign Love the Centre
encourages the public to reconnect
with the city centre and
to show the business community
some love using the tagline
‘There is always something
to do, see, eat, drink and love
when you visit Hamilton’s
city centre.’
Hamilton Central Business
Association general manager
Vanessa Williams says a successful
city centre relies on
having a space that is fit for
purpose and can accommodate
what people want to use it for –
whether that’s business, shopping
or events, and that should
be celebrated.
“We have been holding
these awards since 2010 and
we are committed to recognising
the amazing positive
impact CBD businesses have
on making the central city a
vibrant destination.”
The process of entering
an award, irrespective of the
outcome, can provide a range
of benefits to the entrant,
Vanessa says.
“It offers an opportunity to
look over your achievements,
compare them against your
competitors and see what you
are doing better than everyone
else, or if you are not, to
see what you could be doing to
improve your business.”
Vanessa says the awards
also provides an opportunity
for free marketing and an
additional level of credibility
for your business achieving
an award.
“If you place or win an
award, you have just been
gifted a great new aspect of
your business to promote. It is a
time to celebrate your business,
your employees, your customers
and yourself. Promote your
achievements, proudly display
2022 Shopping category winners Sweet Pea Parties
your awards and remember to
tell everyone.”
Last year, Sweet Pea Parties
topped the shopping category.
A first-time entrant, Kirsty and
Chris Parker’s business grew
from an at-home business over
10 years ago to the largest party
supply store in New Zealand.
The popular Boon Hamilton
Street Art group won the 2022
activity based category for their
delightful festival that brightens
up the CBD with spectacular
murals created by emerging
and established artists.
Dining out winners last year
were Riverbank Lane Vietnamese
restaurant Bahn Mi Caphe
and Cream Eatery for daytime
eating and drinking.
In September the awards
will be judged via three avenues;
a judging panel for the
written submission, a mystery
shopper for close customer
contact businesses
and an in-person interview
with businesses unable to be
mystery shopped.
Categories include marketing
and promotion, innovation,
established business, new business,
public good, eat and drink
daytime, eat and drink bars/
restaurants, shopping, activity,
health & beauty, customer service
and professional services.
The winners will be
announced at an extravaganza
style awards evening held on
1 November.
TO ENTER, VISIT:
LOVETHECENTRE.CO.NZ
Fostering a sustainable tourism workforce
The boom in post-Covid
travel shows people’s
love of exploring new
places, dinners out, attending
events and enjoying tourism
experiences is as strong as ever.
That’s positive for our economy,
communities and businesses
in our region, but it also
poses a challenge for a tourism
workforce that’s already under
significant pressure.
We regularly hear from
Waikato tourism and hospitality
businesses that are grappling
with staffing shortages
and finding it difficult to recruit
and retain staff. Low unemployment
and wage competition
from other sectors mean
tourism and hospitality can no
longer rely solely on their reputation
of being ‘fun’ industries
to work in to attract staff.
There are a number
of high-profile initiatives
underway nationally to help
resolve tourism industry challenges,
including the Government
led Tourism Industry
Transformation Plan.
The first phase of that plan
aims to create the foundations
for a future-proofed workforce,
and the Ministry of Business,
Innovation & Employment has
released a Better Work Action
Plan to outline a way forward
for the industry.
The plan identifies four
systemic challenges: ‘demand
fluctuations’, ‘pay and conditions’,
‘firm maturity and
scale’, and ‘the current and
future skills gap’. It champions
the need for a new approach
and identifies six Tirohanga
Hou – new ways of viewing
or thinking.
These Tirohanga Hou
include recognising quality
employers and improving
employment standards and
practices, as well as efforts to
create fit-for-purpose education
and training. They also
include a push for the industry
to embrace and cater for
seasonality, implement initiatives
to improve cultural competency
and ensure authentic
storytelling, and lift technology
uptake and innovation. Lastly,
and importantly, the plan
advocates for efforts to showcase
the great pathways and
people in tourism.
Having a national action
plan is helpful and Hamilton
& Waikato Tourism is actively
supporting it in our region.
We know tourism is exciting
and will always attract
those who love people, but
showcasing opportunities for
career progression will be
critical to keep people working
in tourism for the long
haul. Over and above guiding
and front of house positions,
there’s immense scope to move
into roles such as accountants,
drivers, marketers, chefs, HR
managers, event organisers
and data analysts, to name
a few.
In recent months we’ve
stepped up our work with
education providers to provide
presentations for students
studying tourism-related
courses. We’re also supporting
students with work experience
placements with tourism operators
around our region, as well
as in the Hamilton & Waikato
Tourism office working alongside
our team.
Just recently we supported
the national Go With Tourism
by joining members of their
team at the Waikato Careers
Expo to educate teachers,
parents and students about
tourism as a career pathway.
The key message here was
that tourism offers a fulfilling
life-long career, with a clear
pathway to progression. And
yes, it’s still a fun industry to
work in.
When it comes to
employment standards and
practises, advocacy is important.
We have been seeking out
and showcasing stories of operators
who are exceptional in
this area, and whose pay rates
are more than competitive with
those found in other industries.
We’ve also got an active
Ambassadorship programme
in Waikato providing workshops
for people who engage
with international and domestic
manuhiri to our region. This
programme provides knowledge
about local stories of
TELLING
WAIKATO’S STORY
BY NICOLA GREENWELL
Chief executive, Hamilton &
Waikato Tourism
people and place and assists
with cultural competency and
authentic storytelling. It also
shares customer service tips
and advice.
These initiatives are critically
important for the future of
our industry, but they are just
a start. We’re conscious there’s
a need for support attracting
people to the industry now, in
the lead-up to the busy summer
months, so we need immediate
results as well as long
term thinking.
We look forward to engaging
with industry, iwi and
government to explore more
opportunities to put the Better
Work Action Plan into practise
and to showcase why tourism
continues to be one of the
most vibrant, exciting and fulfilling
career choices anyone
can make.