Exploring local community is 'first key' to saving hospitality industry, says Thunder Bay Tourism manager

The tourism and hospitality industries, which play a large role in the economy of almost every community in northwestern Ontario, are taking a beating during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The manager of Tourism Thunder Bay is assembling a picture of just how "dire" the situation is, and what could be done to help.

Statistics show members of Indigenous communities spend over $400-million annually on food and accommodation in Thunder Bay, while the city itself boasts a diverse hospitality sector with over 1,300 leisure, sports and conference businesses that employ approximately 43,000 people, said Paul Pepe. Those visitors, are no longer coming to the city.

Travel and hospitality "was the first sector to feel the immediate hit and it will be the sector that is going to take the longest to recover as consumer confidence in travel again is expected to be slow and a lot of those businesses have really thin margins," he said.

A report published in late April by Destination Canada, a Crown corporation dedicated to international marketing, found that 57 per cent, or as many as 61,000 businesses across the country could close permanently by the end of May.

"We are really seeing frustration and desperation from a lot of our partners," said Pepe, adding thatmany attractions and restaurants have already used any reserve funds they may have had, and arefinding it increasinglydifficult o stay afloat.

As well,many northwestern Ontario businesses, especially hunting and fishing lodges, rely on American clientele for as much as 95 per cent of their bookings, he said.

"The border closure and the continued border closure certainly adds another fiscal and financial pressure to a lot of the operations as well and you know they can lose partial or lose a full season."

The issue is "consumer confidence", with data released May 6 from Destination Ontario showing75 per cent of Canadians, and nearly the same number of Americans "aren't necessarily going to be comfortable traveling for a couple of months."

'Support their own restaurants, attractions'

It's why many communities and businesses are pushing 'local' as a big component of theirrecovery marketing strategies for the next two months, and upto two years, he said.

With the loss of almost every major cultural and sporting event for summer 2021, a focus on local will be "the first key to stimulating the economy again," said Pepe.

He said once businesses begin to reopen, he'll encourage people "to get out and explore their own community and support their own restaurants and support their own attractions. And you know losing our attractions and losing a lot of our urban and private sector attractions would be a big loss to us long term."