Strength in the City

By Business SA, Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chief Executive, Martin Haese.

Published in The Advertiser SA Business Journal on Tuesday 20 April 2021.

Just like your typical superhero experiences in action movies, businesses in the City of Adelaide will reign victorious in the end and live happily ever after … but there will be some trials along the way.

The villain of this story is of course, the COVID-19 pandemic, beating CBDs around the world to within an inch of their lives.

In South Australia, we have been lucky enough to only be mildly affected by the health implications of COVID-19 with minimal virus circulating in the community at the worst of times, but for the economy it has been a different story.

Through to the end of 2020, many of the regions reigned supreme, being the unlikely and welcome victors in this long and strange tale, but the heart of South Australia’s economy lies between the terraces in the small but mighty 5.4 square kilometers that is the City of Adelaide.

Within these boundaries, including North Adelaide, is a Gross Regional Product of $20.16 billion dollars per annum, representing 18.21% of the South Australia’s Gross State Product according to the City of Adelaide’s Economic Profile in 2020. It represents a 26,177 strong residential population, with 15,251 local businesses and employs 142,723 local jobs.

During the battle of the last 12 months, the city business community has been materially impacted. With the support of both State and Federal Governments, businesses in the CBD through measures such as JobKeeper have weathered the storm, but with little support remaining, it’s up to business owners to remember that they are now the heroes of the story … the ones taking the risks.

A return to normal trading conditions will only come after population wide roll out of a vaccine and the opening of international travel. Until those two things are in sight, business owners are rising to the occasion, digging deep and finding the strength to push through by continuing to innovate and find creative ways to trade to the best of their abilities until the COVID ‘battle’ is over.

On Tuesday 11 May, Business SA will be presenting its Strength and Success Seminar at the National Wine Centre. This full day event is designed to provide essential information to business owners seeking to sustain or grow their business, as well as ensuring they comply with their obligations as employers.

By providing opportunities for networking and education, the heart of Business SA’s mission is to create connections for business owners for whatever their path may be. The Strength and Success Seminar will allow businesses to network with their peers and be inspired by 10 industry professionals in the fields of sales, workplace relations, WHS, business transformation, marketing and accounting, providing practical tools they can take back to their organisations for immediate implementation.

Through strength and perseverance, comes success. Business owners at all levels know this to be true. The CBD will thrive in the end, saved by the hero’s that are the business owners, winning their battle against the virus with a war chest of knowledge, passion, and strength.

Tickets for the Strength and Success Seminar on Tuesday 11 May are $120 per person or $60 for members of Business SA, and are available from strengthandsuccess.com.au