[coppers]

Could anyone give us some advice on the current economic climate. We are considering moving from the U.K to CHCH and would love to open/run our own cafe/restuarant. Is it a bad time to do this? I see there are no chef jobs advertised. My parents in Dunedin say No,no,no stay in the U.K as things are really bad. We need to make a decision.

[mylesdw]

I don't have any direct experience in the catering trade other than as a customer. My thoughts are that if you do it right you can do well regardless of the economic climate as long as you get all the other details right: location, quality, value etc. There is no obvious decline in diners in the cafes that I have noticed. Furthermore with the exchange rate in your favour and the property market slow you might pick up a bargain.

[Elainep]

You could try contacting the chamber of commerce in Christchurch.
http://www.cecc.org.nz/

When I went out to Auckland for a recce last year, I went and had a chat with the local chamber of commerce as we were thinking of going out to NZ on a long term business visa at that time. They were invaluable (they obviously want you to join when you have a business, but they were really helpful about pointing me in the right direction for information and bringing up issues that I perhaps hadn't considered).

I also met with the business development manager at the city council. Again, they proved invaluable.
http://www.christchurch.org.nz/business/

Good luck with your venture:nice1

[victoria24]

if it helps, just back from the north island and all the cafes we frequented were doing a roaring trade compared to any in the uk. oh! except the roadside ones on state highway 2 that were always shut for tea!

[coppers]

Thanks for replies and encouragement. Will certainly visit ccc when (if) we get there. My thinking is right place, right food, right price and we should be ok. Just very scary. No chef jobs advertised if all fails.