The survey canvassed the thoughts of almost 1700 business owners across regional and metropolitan NSW in recent weeks as restrictions were coming to an end.
"Business NSW has been conducting this survey each quarter for almost 20 years," said Business NSW Chief Executive Daniel Hunter.
"It was conducted in the middle of perhaps the most dire and challenging economic periods we’ve seen during that time. It’s good to see business owners have a level of optimism that they will be able to recover," Mr Hunter said.
"Key findings from this survey indicated:
- 53% of businesses would be closed without Government support
- 50% of those surveyed had accessed the JobSaver payment
- 41% had accessed specialised Covid -19 business grants; and
- 13% had accessed the Covid -19 Disaster Payment
"While they in themselves are sobering statistics, it does indicate that the Government support packages hit the right note, with businesses finding themselves in the same position at the end of the quarter as they were when it began.
"What’s also encouraging is that 41% of businesses were ready to 'snap back' as soon as restrictions on their operations were lifted, and with regional travel now allowed in NSW, that figure will be growing as we countdown to Christmas.
"Of course, reopening has put the need for skilled migration back under the spotlight as there are too many industries desperately looking to fill positions, but they can’t find the right candidates.
"Regional NSW has done it particularly tough during lockdown as they missed out on two lots of school holiday travel revenue, and a lot of businesses became paralysed by closed borders and logistical delays.
"We need to get out there and support the regions over the Summer break," Mr Hunter said.
