Buying from local businesses can help power up the Canberra economy

This article is sponsored by the ACT Government.

If you ever needed an extra reason to grab a delicious burger or maybe buy your fruit, veggies and groceries from businesses owned and run by Canberrans here it is.

By choosing to support local businesses you can be part of a chain reaction that can help power up the city's economy and benefit the whole community.

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are vital to a healthy Canberra economy. In Australia, SMEs make up 99 per cent of the economy and employ two in every three workers.

The COVID-19 restrictions imposed have affected different businesses in different ways and to varying degrees but everywhere they have been working hard to find innovative strategies to keep on trading, and supporting their communities, staff and suppliers.

For Sascha Brodbeck and Joelle Bou-Jaoude, the co-owners of Canberra's iconic Brodburger, the coronavirus restrictions hit their popular business hard, but the support of their customers has helped them survive and even start preparing to add an extra outlet.

"It's been one of the biggest impacts on our business that we have had." said Sascha. "We've had to work out different ways of operating and making sure that we keep everyone employed. It's been terrifying but also exciting. We had to be adapting and changing all the time as the situation changed.

"We started doing home deliveries using our own drivers, and also ramped up takeaways, and we haven't had to get rid of one person. We've actually employed six more and have training in progress because we're planning to open in another new location."

Joelle said she and Sascha were "super grateful" for the support that has helped not just their business continue to trade but also those of their valued local suppliers.

"The first thing we thought when all this happened was how to we support not just our staff but also our local suppliers - our amazing meat suppliers, our baker, our fruit and veg suppliers. Some of them have been with us since we started 11 years ago.

"We could see our customers appreciated the hard work we were doing and wanted to get behind us. I think people realised that we are all interconnected and we need to help each other out through this time. It will help the local economy recover faster.

"There was a lot of love.The Canberra community is very close but they really went above and beyond for us. They were bringing tears to my eyes."

Meanwhile, over in Cook, the Raad family were confronted with the challenge of meeting the demand for food and groceries but also keeping their customers and staff safe.

Deemed an essential service, their 17-year-old family business The Cook Grocer was under huge pressure as people rushed to stock up on groceries - particularly toilet paper, flour and hand sanitiser.

Fortunately for the Raads, and the community, the business had launched an online ordering and free local home delivery service not long before the COVID-19 restrictions hit. It became a lifeline for many.

"[COVID-19] has really stretched the store in so many ways that we could never have imagined." said Daniel Raad. "It really tested our supply chains in many departments. At the height of it there were so many key items that we were unable to source and we were really inundated. There was so much panic buying. It was crazy. My heart is beating just talking about it.

"As well, we had to be constantly disinfecting the store, all the major touch points. We were very conscious of keeping everyone, our staff, our customers safe.

"We were under the pump but the appreciation and thanks we were receiving from our customers made our job a lot easier."

Like Brodburger, The Cook Grocer has a strong commitment to supporting as many local suppliers and producers as possible. From honey and wine, to chocolate and biscuits, it stocks more than 70 local products.

"All of our local suppliers are the back bone of our business," said Daniel. "It's always been our mission to provide a retail space for them to sell their products. As a local business we are able to do that and we're really passionate about supporting them.

"The quality is just so good, the carbon footprint is less, it's supporting local jobs, and the local economy. We are really spoiled around Canberra; we have so many great producers.

"We've become such good friends with so many of them and I really admire all of them for what they've worked hard to accomplish. It's a very tough market."

Choose local to support our locals. For more information, visit www.covid19.act.gov.au/chooselocalCBR

This article is sponsored by the ACT Government.