Melbourne Money boosts inner city
A new stimulus scheme for the hospitality industry, dubbed Midweek Melbourne Money, has proved effective with over half of the available funds claimed within a week of the scheme’s commencement.
The scheme allows hospitality patrons the ability to claim back up to 30% of their food and beverage bills to a maximum value of $150 over the scheme’s lifetime, when spending $50 to $500 in a municipality eatery, bar or cafe between Monday and Thursday. It has been designed to encourage people back to mid-week inner city dining and entertainment, and is being offered by the City of Melbourne through the $200m Melbourne City Revitalisation Fund, a joint partnership with the Victorian government. West Melbourne is included in the program.
An amount of $5m has been set aside for the stimulus initiative, which opened on 15 November, with funds allocated on a first-in basis. The scheme has been unexpectedly popular, with diners claiming $450,000 per day on average over the first six days of operation, compared with $250,000 daily for a similar initiative in place after earlier pandemic lockdowns. Flyer printing is a popular way to promote local hospitality businesses and special offers.
With 40% of the Midweek Melbourne Money’s users reporting they also engaged in retail shopping and 53% influenced to return to the office by the program, the scheme appears to have hit the mark despite early projections based on rate of fund use indicating a likely short run.
The scheme allows hospitality patrons the ability to claim back up to 30% of their food and beverage bills to a maximum value of $150 over the scheme’s lifetime, when spending $50 to $500 in a municipality eatery, bar or cafe between Monday and Thursday. It has been designed to encourage people back to mid-week inner city dining and entertainment, and is being offered by the City of Melbourne through the $200m Melbourne City Revitalisation Fund, a joint partnership with the Victorian government. West Melbourne is included in the program.
An amount of $5m has been set aside for the stimulus initiative, which opened on 15 November, with funds allocated on a first-in basis. The scheme has been unexpectedly popular, with diners claiming $450,000 per day on average over the first six days of operation, compared with $250,000 daily for a similar initiative in place after earlier pandemic lockdowns. Flyer printing is a popular way to promote local hospitality businesses and special offers.
With 40% of the Midweek Melbourne Money’s users reporting they also engaged in retail shopping and 53% influenced to return to the office by the program, the scheme appears to have hit the mark despite early projections based on rate of fund use indicating a likely short run.