PROVIDOOR EXPANDS TO NEW SOUTH WALES

Premium meal delivery service, Providoor, has expanded to New South Wales, launching this week for deliveries over the weekend.  

Providoor has launched with an impressive menu of partners, including Cirrus, Monopole, Yellow, The Apollo, Cho Cho San, Icebergs Dining Room + Bar, Golden Century, Spice Temple, Rockpool and Ciccia Bella, with more to be announced soon. 

Prepared by restaurant chefs and delivered via certified cold freight, the at-home meals eschew the ready-to-eat status quo, to be finished by the customer in their own kitchen, actively involving people in a premium cooking experience and giving them as close to an in-restaurant meal as possible.  

Providoor founder and chef-owner of Maha, Shane Delia said: “I’m beyond thrilled to be expanding Providoor to New South Wales. Our initial plans had us launching later in the year, however with much of the State under tough lockdown restrictions we’ve fast-tracked that. Sydney is home to some of the best restaurants in the world, and after the success so many Melbourne restaurants continue to see on the Providoor platform, I’m looking forward to Sydney restaurants seeing similar results.” 

Minister for Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western Sydney Stuart Ayres said: “Sydney has an outstanding reputation for high quality produce and world-class dining, so it is fantastic that Providoor will support our hospitality industry to keep offering signature dishes to restaurants’ valued customers. It’s pleasing to see industry-led innovation creating new opportunities for Sydney businesses in challenging times – it’s a win-win for industry and diners.”  

Icebergs owner, Maurice Terzini said: “Providoor is giving us a platform that will deliver our product to the same standard as we would in our restaurants. It is also generating another stream of revenue that can only add value to our restaurants in the future.” 

Providoor takes orders by 4pm for next day delivery in Sydney Metro, regional NSW and Canberra. For more information, go to Sydney Providoor online.  

PAYROLL TAX REDUCTIONS AND DEFERRALS TO SUPPORT BUSINESSES  

NSW businesses are set to benefit from further payroll tax relief to help ease the financial burden of COVID-19 lockdowns.   

Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said targeted support was being made available through Revenue NSW, with payroll tax deferrals already available for all businesses and a 25 per cent reduction on the 2021/22 payroll tax reconciliation for eligible businesses.  

“Many businesses across the State are doing it tough right now with less foot traffic resulting in a decline of sales and transactions,” Mr Perrottet said. 

“These payroll tax measures are part of over $4 billion in various business grants and assistance to help businesses stay in business and to keep staff in jobs. 

“We have said right throughout the pandemic that we would put people, businesses and jobs ahead of the budget, which is why we are rolling out a record business support program.”  

Finance and Small Business Minister Damien Tudehope said the NSW Government was standing by to help businesses wherever possible.  

“We want to free up cash for businesses at a time when businesses are doing it tough, by waiving or deferring their tax," Mr Tudehope said. 

All NSW businesses who have a payroll tax liability have the option of deferring lodgement and payment of their 2020/21 annual reconciliation until 7 October 2021. 

Customers required to lodge monthly returns will also have the option of deferring their returns due in August and September until 7 October 2021. In addition, all payroll tax customers that defer their payments are eligible for an interest free payment plan of up to 12 months. 

Businesses with wages between $1.2 million and $10 million that have experienced a 30 per cent decline in turnover will get a 25 per cent reduction of their 2021/22 payroll tax.  

For more information about payroll tax and other support measures for businesses, go to NSW.gov.au. 

NEW CONTENT SHOWCASING NORTH COAST REGIONS

Destination NSW has produced a suite of new content for the Central Coast, Newcastle, Port Stephens and the Barrington Coast. 

The new visual assets have been captured to refresh and add to existing content covering the whole of the North Coast and are available on the Destination NSW Content Library.  

The content, including photography, video and editorial features, highlights the variety of experiences available in these beautiful coastal regions. There are highlight reels picked by our editors as well as social media-ready images to tell your social stories. 

In the Central Coast suite, highlights include content capturing horse riding treks through peaceful hinterland, zipline thrills high in the treetops and a highly appealing tour of a chocolate factory. Find new dining destinations and fascinating cultural institutions in Newcastle while in Port Stephens, family friendly content of immersive wildlife experiences are on show.

The peaceful Barrington Coast collection features gorgeous scenic drives over rivers and lush farmland, tours through pristine national parks and live music performances. And of course, there are the stunning beaches all along the coast, with content of surfing, beachside picnics, horseback tours across the sand and stand-up paddleboarding. 

Discover the new content from the North Coast regions in the latest edition of ContentED, a newsletter presenting new visual assets available through the Destination NSW Content Library. 

Register to access the Content Library and receive the newsletter here. 

DELIVERING MORE LIVE MUSIC FOR AUSTRALIAN COMMUNITIES  

The reactivation of live music across Australia is one step closer, with the Commonwealth Government announcing more than $608,000 in additional grants to be shared by 18 venues across the country, as part of Round Two of the $20 million Live Music Australia program.  

Five NSW venues and initiatives will receive funding through this round of the program: Arts Outwest, Bellingen Brewing Company, Little Albert’s (Bathurst), Old Bar Tavern and White Horse Hotel (Inner West Sydney). 

This additional funding brings the Government’s investment to more than $5.6 million under of the first year of the program, supporting more than 200 live music venues and the immediate recovery of the live music sector. 

Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts Paul Fletcher said the grants would provide critical support for the Australian live music industry. 

“This program is assisting live music venues across the country to re-open and rebuild their capacity for programming activity once restrictions on public gatherings are lifted,” Mr Fletcher said.  

Co-Chief Executive Officer of Secret Sounds Group and Member of the Creative Economy Taskforce Paul Piticco said the funding would enable the sector to re-emerge from the devastating impacts of the pandemic.  

“Home-grown live music is intrinsic to Australia’s culture, which is why this funding is critical to the return of Australia’s vibrant and much-loved creative sector,” Mr Piticco said.  

Applications are open for Round Three of the $20 million Live Music Australia Program until 9 August.

Visit www.grants.gov.au or www.arts.gov.au for more information. 

VISION WALKS BYRON BAY’S NEW VIRTUAL OFFERING 

Owner of Vision Walks Eco Tours Wendy Bithell has come up with an innovative plan to keep her Byron Bay business active through the pandemic. 

With a background in interactive learning, Ms Bithell has moved some of her tours online. As a result, Vision Walks has been leading the way with Live Virtual Tours for the past 12 months. 

Vision Walks recently expanded their virtual offerings to include Aboriginal Tours at Cape Byron with Aunty Delta. 

Recently Aunty Delta ran a special virtual tour for some Native American school children from California. During the experience Aunty Delta told stories, showed the students local wildlife, demonstrated bush tucker and sang and danced with the kids via Zoom.  

The online tours are truly interactive experiences, where all the participants connect on a Zoom link and interact in real time, in situ. 

The Live Virtual Koala Tour – one of the original virtual offerings – is the only one of its kind in the world and has been a huge hit with Harvard University, Spotify, multi-national financial companies, family groups and for birthday parties.  

Ms Bithell has been running Vision Walks Eco Tours for 14 years. Prior to COVID-19, 70 per cent of Vision Walks Eco Tours customers were from overseas, so it was necessary to pivot with innovative ideas to keep the business afloat. Since introducing the virtual offering, 30 per cent of customers are from overseas representing 15 per cent of total sales. 

Other Live Virtual Tours offered by Vision Walks include the Platypus Walk and the Glow in the Dark Tour which sees Ms Bithell venture out with a UV light at night.

For more information and to book, go to visionwalks.com.au. 

DESTINATION NORTH COAST BUSINESS ACCELERATOR & MENTORING PROGRAM 

Tourism businesses on the North Coast can apply for a 10-month Business Accelerator & Mentoring Program that will run from July 2021 to May 2022 and has been created to support business growth. 

Michael Thurston, General Manager of Destination North Coast (DNC) said the program was a rare opportunity for North Coast tourism businesses to receive tailored and dedicated mentoring, from industry experts. 

“DNC has invested significantly in the program to enable the mentoring to be delivered free of charge. We believe the investment will be offset by the anticipated, significant improvement in participating businesses’ operating methods and broadened appeal, which in turn will help expedite the growth of the visitor economy of the North Coast,” Mr Thurston said.  

Eligible businesses will have a dedicated and experienced business mentor to support them. Benefits of the program include:  

• Pathway learning with the flexibility of working on key business areas or concerns 
• Up to seven hours of one-on-one mentoring support including face-to-face, phone or video call 
• Flexible hours for mentoring sessions to work around business hours 
• Online group webinar series 
• Program resources and guidance  
• Peer support through a dedicated Facebook group   
• Ongoing support between sessions.

Destination North Coast is hosting one-hour online information sessions about the program on Monday 26 July, Tuesday 27 July and Thursday 29 July. For more information contact Sarah Elphinstone, DNC Project Manager, via email or call 0410 448 570.