The COVID has not only impacted one country but the entire world. Neither of us has an idea as to when will this end nor when will our lives get back to normal. Will this be the new normal? How will we deal with the new normal? Will we be able to adjust to it or still continue to be at home and affect the industry as a whole?
One industry that was amongst the first to be hit and last to be recovered was the food and beverage industry. It has definitely lead to a financial imbalance in the food and beverage industry. The food and beverage industry has its own different types, but the worst hit is the nightlife i.e. clubs industry. Being considered as a luxurious service that can be neglected during the time of cries, this was the most hit industry during the Covid-19. The nightlife sector was anyways dealing with their previous issues such as licensing, timing regulations, facing local authorities, etc,. But, with the strict rules of Covid and the social distancing, sadly the nightlife sector will continue facing these problems as well. This will clearly lead to less public in cafes and bars and will affect their financial position. Whilst we wait for the situation to settle down a little, and for the government to come up with a re-opening plan that lets the industry function. With the new rules coming to place it will surely affect consumer behavior for quite a long time.
With the new rules settling in, that include social distancing which is very contrary to the nightlife sector. The other rule that will set in place is having distant seating, lesser covers which in turn will have lesser people to accommodate which will lead to lesser cash flow. Compulsions of hand sanitizers, masks, temperature checks will be a part of the new normal. Metropolitan cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore are the few cities where nightlife is on a rise. Being the hubs for nightlife, having the best pubs and bars in Hyderabad will take some more time to become 100% operational when compared to other non-metropolitan cities. This will surely lead to investors investing in cities that open up fully way before these metropolitan cities. This will result in a deep industry shift.
Almost all industries are looking out for some or the other way for bailout schemes by the government. This could include tax relaxation, license fee waivers, funds to supports employees, etc,. This time is quite crucial to ensure the sustainability of players today. Many outlets have come up with different concepts and ideas to just have their cash flow moving.
The nightlife industry highly supports artists, bartenders, and others with specific skill sets that are required for the industry. Top DJ artists in Hyderabad, Bangalore, and other cities are been badly hit due to the crises. They need to hire at their right value but that can only be possible if the industry reaches its normal cash flow routine. Even though India hasn’t really confirmed the rules for restaurants and cafes but the rules followed worldwide surely give an idea of what could be the rules in the coming future.
Let’s take examples of other countries to see how the scenario could get in the future. In a country like China, about 25% of the restaurants have been shut down for good due to financial crises since the pandemic. Netherlands government has implied the 1.5-meter distancing in restaurants. This reduces the capacity to 30% which is not enough to keep them at par. But many entrepreneurs have taken advantage of this and have become.
Dependent on online platforms such as zoom to digitally connect people. This is used for various reasons, such as teaching classes, nightlife, dancing sessions, etc. When it comes to nightlife events in Hyderabad and other cities, the financial issues are surpassed. Therefore, even with these digital platforms parties are doing really well and people are still connected and taking advantage of it as much as possible. This pandemic has really taught all of us much more than we could ever expect. The difficulties every sector of the industry is facing are different but we are in this together and we shall overcome the pandemic with a lot of strength and courage.
Therefore with new norms coming in, and things changing with time we will surely be able to overcome these financial and other problems and head on to a beautiful future.
