How Will 2022 Stack Up Against The Previous Two Years In Business?

 

It’s been two years since the lockdowns and restrictions due to COVID-19 began affecting our lives and businesses.

Since then, food and beverage operations have been reduced to take out or eating on the patio rather than indoors and that’s when golf operations weren’t shut down altogether.

In the early part of the pandemic, customers/members weren’t even allowed in pro shops, many of which went online as golf operations scrambled to put other safety protocols in place to keep golfers/staff safe.

Yet, we made it through as participation in golf grew as it offered the opportunity to social distance, as opposed to other forms of recreation and entertainment.

Things are seemingly returning to normal. Two years later, restrictions are easing considerably, even with masks coming off in some provinces. Going into this golf season, we may understand that COVID isn’t over, but we may have to learn to live with it going forward.

Yet, there are areas in the world, particularly various parts of Asia and Europe, in which a fast rise in cases attributed to the stealth version of Omicron, BA.2, is being reported, so the possibility of restrictions isn’t entirely out of the question as we move forward in 2022.

We’ll also need to cope with runaway inflation. Canada’s inflation rate rose to 5.7 per cent in February, the highest it’s been since August of 1991 as everything from gas to groceries increased.

That, of course, means the cost of doing business got more expensive, whether it be fuel for your machinery or products for your food and beverage operation. Explaining price increases to people already dealing with the soaring cost of living won’t be easy.

Inflation, continued supply chain disruptions, the possibility of more COVID restrictions and increased competition for the entertainment/recreation dollar, are or could be issues we have to deal with in 2022. So how do you seek it shaking out?

How will the 2022 golf season – with inflation etc. – compare to the previous two pandemic years from a business perspective? More challenging? Less challenging? Equally challenging?

That’s the question in this week’s poll.

You can answer below or on the GNN home page and if you’d like to add a few thoughts on this subject, please use the Comments section below.

About Ian Hutchinson

'Hutch' is a veteran Canadian golf writer, whose history in the game includes an extensive background with Canadian golf trade publications. Hutch is also a regular contributor to publications and websites in Canada and the United States.