The reality of increased summer tourism and staff shortages began to hit home in Wānaka’s town centre yesterday, as many hospitality businesses closed for the public holiday.
Ritual Espresso Cafe was one of the few that opened.
Head chef and co-owner Paul Tregea said Boxing Day was going very well but he was "busier than hoped".
"People seem to have come again this year, which is great."
Mr Tregea thought many other cafes chose to close on Boxing Day because they were having staffing issues.
"They are on holiday and they have come to work for us today. They know the ropes," he said.
Down the other end of the counter, his partner in life and business, Chris Hadfield, was under pressure taking orders from a long queue spilling out the door.
"Apparently, we are the only one open today," Mr Hadfield said.
While he may have felt like that, a handful of others, including The Doughbin and Sushi Mi, were also open at 10am, and The Lake Bar had a sign up saying it would open from noon, offering a restricted menu.
However, most of Wānaka’s lakefront cafes had taken the day off, including Kai Whaka Pai, Alchemy, The Trout, Speight’s Bar, Big Fig and Relishes.
Hospitality staff shortages have been felt in Wānaka for many months.
Stressed proprietors have been advertising in shop windows for staff for over a year.
Locals are now used to reduced hours at their favourite watering holes and eateries, closures on public holidays and sudden decisions to shut the doors to protect staff health.
Queenstown Lakes District Council economic development manager Peter Harris signalled a challenging summer ahead at the end of November, when he released the council’s quarterly labour market snapshot report.
The report showed a 330.4% increase in local job advertisements listed on Jobfix for the year ended September 2022.
Worker availability for the same period was down 36.8% for those on employer-assisted visas, and down 52% for those classified as "job-seekers" in the district.
Economist and report author Benje Patterson noted the district had survived the winter, but labour market shortages were enduring and looked like they would be exacerbated by the summer season.
He forecast the Queenstown Lakes hospitality and accommodation sector would need to expand its headcount by 1500 workers.
