Small business feeling the squeeze on both sides of Tasman – MYOB chief

There are a lot of similarities in terms of what businesses are concerned about in both Australia and New Zealand, says MYOB’s Melbourne-based chief executive Paul Robson.

Issues like inflation and labour shortages dominated concerns
on both sides of the Tasman, he said.

But Robson, in Auckland for the Beyond the Ballot finance leaders debate, said recent business surveys had highlighted some difference in outlook and confidence.

MYOB’s Business Monitor surveys 1000 small and medium-sized businesses here and in Australia.

Recent results showed just under 70 per cent of New Zealand businesses think the next 12 months are going to be tougher than the last 12 months, Robson said.

“In Australia, that’s about 50 per cent, so there’s a pretty a significant difference between those two statistics,” he said. “The other one I think right now is, you know, New Zealand’s about to have an election.

“So there’s a lot of conversation around what will happen in the New Zealand economy. It really comes back down to just that ease of starting up a business, the ease of running a business, given the inflationary pressures, the cost of capital.”

Robson said many New Zealand businesses – especially in Auckland – still felt like they were in recovery mode after the pandemic and lockdowns.

“I [was] just talking to one of our customers, [who] runs a number of dumpling restaurants here in Auckland, and they were saying that it feels like in downtown Auckland, it’s a three-day week,” he said.

“They used to run a business that was [operating] Monday through Friday, and they were serviced by larger businesses in the area, where employees would come and eat at lunch and maybe stay for dinner on a Thursday or a Friday evening. They’re now seeing their business [chiefly operating across] Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday.”

In Australia, things were coming back towards a four-day environment in the central business districts, he said.

“There is a sense that businesses are still shell-shocked from [the pandemic] experience. If you’re a food and beverage business in a CBD, obviously you’re impacted pretty significantly.”

Robson said he had observed the cities coming back to life in the US in the past six or 12 months, while Australasia had lagged a bit.

“I think that’s gonna start to happen more here in the next six to 12 months,” he said.

“Melbourne in particular was one of the worst-hit cities in terms of lockdown, and we’re seeing that CBD start to come back.”

With the general election looming, Robson had a clear message for whoever forms the next government.

We should acknowledge small business was “the lifeblood, it is the engine room of the economy, both in New Zealand and in Australia”.

“Access to talent is very important, but not just any talent – access to skilled talent is really important. Access to digital infrastructure is really important. Access to traditional infrastructure is really important. Access to capital for investment is really important.”