9 Feds set for structure review Vol 19 No 43, November 8, 2021
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Exporters walk Delta tightrope Richard Rennie richard.rennie@globalhq.co.nz
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EW Zealand needs to step carefully in crafting its image in a post-covid vaccinated trading environment, with the international business community challenging this country’s approach to the Delta outbreak. The latest NZ Story global perceptions survey conducted in the early stages of the last lockdown has revealed international customers are viewing NZ as taking a “trigger happy” approach to covid and risks losing the empathy established through the first covid response and success. The survey involved focus group interviews of consumers and businesses in nine of NZ’s major trading partners, including China, Australia, the United Kingdom, Germany and UAE. “What we found was that the global business audience took a much less empathetic view of what we had achieved,” One Picture consumer strategy manager Alex Jones said. “There was this thought that we did well when it was easy, that we could close off and preach to the world. But now we are being seen as behind as vaccination rates become this new measure of what matters. “They saw our care as being limited to ourselves. It’s almost like we don’t care for the relationships we do have with the world. The findings echo growing frustrations within the exporting community over difficulties in reconnecting with the world when MIQ barriers exist.
STRAINED? While New Zealand farms are seeing good export returns, our connections with business partners overseas are being put to the test.
So, the B2B issue does ring alarm bells for us. We cannot drop off the radar of, say, a major supermarket buyer. It takes time to get back on their list. David Downs NZ Story Late last month ExportNZ executive director Catherine Beard said over half of NZ exporters were worried about the inability to travel due to border restrictions. The survey reflects that opinion,
with many citing the lack of clarity in next steps and timelines causing planning struggles. An approach that felt justified in a pre-vaccine world was seen as increasingly backward as the rest of the world started to open. In contrast, Kiwi consumers interviewed remained proud about NZ’s leadership and recognition around the world, appreciating the freedoms the lockdowns had ultimately afforded them. Jones says a lot of business people spoken to in markets say they would remain uncomfortable flying to NZ because they may not be able to return home. NZ was seen as “hard, fast and trigger happy” when it came closing down the country after the
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discovery of one case of covid-19, which received considerable scathing international media coverage at the time. He says there was a need to start building a story with greater certainty for business customers and take the opportunity to explain why NZ did what it did in response to the pandemic. NZ Story chief executive David Downs says NZ largely traded business to business, and had to work hard to justify value, provenance and return to the importer, particularly in such a challenging global market. “So, the B2B issue does ring alarm bells for us. We cannot drop off the radar of, say, a major supermarket buyer. It takes time to get back on their list,” Downs said.
He says overseas customers needed help to understand the logic behind NZ’s lockdown, including highlighting the risk covid-19 infections would pose to this country’s primary processing sectors. However, the survey also found digitisation of relationships was now more common, with covid accelerating the use of tools like Zoom for starting relationships and networks previously out of use. Digitisation also extended to shopping habits and NZ exports were viewed as well-positioned to make the most of retail disruption. While the global business community risks becoming jaded
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OUR CLIMATE DOES
The Climate Change Commission is challenging rural landowners to plant another 380,000 hectares of exotic forests by 2035. It’s a great opportunity to fight global warming and set up your property for some long term timber income at the same time.
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