William Pascua
Filipino business owners in Melbourne are grappling with rising operational costs as the conflict in the Middle East affects fuel prices in Australia.
Elbert “Elby” Estampador, the owner of Filipino-inspired eatery Halaya, says companies and suppliers are already charging fuel levies, which are driving up the costs of goods he purchases for his business. Elby says he has no choice but to pass on the price increases to his customers. “For us to keep absorbing the price increases is not feasible.”
Alongside rising costs of goods, Elby anticipates supply chain issues between Australia and the Philippines, which could affect the import of ube. Ube is a purple yam native to the Philippines, used in a range of dishes served at Halaya. “We might not be able to get some of the things we used to get. The menu might be affected for one,” he says.
Elby hasn’t ruled out other operational changes, like reducing staff hours or changing the eatery’s opening hours. “We might just operate when we think people are in the office.” He says that he wouldn’t implement these changes straight away and is waiting to see how the conflict overseas develops. “It’s going to be trial and error.”
The rising cost of goods comes at a time when businesses are still dealing with the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. Elby, a hospitality industry worker with seven years of experience, says that foot traffic levels have still not fully recovered five years on from the last lockdown in Melbourne. “Some people work in the office twice a week, once a week,” he says. “That’s a lot of customers that aren’t in the building that you used to serve food to, or coffee to.”
The Reserve Bank of Australia will introduce reforms to remove surcharges on debit and credit cards, which will come into effect from October 1 this year. The changes are expected to save consumers $1.6 billion annually, which Elby believes could help drive some customers back to his eatery. “Customers don’t like it. We don’t like it. We just don’t have a choice.”
“If customers are happy, they’ll come back.”
