WELL DONE, NEW ZEALAND.

We’ve survived! We’ve made it through wars, earthquakes, volcanoes, recessions, massacres and now we can add a pandemic to the list.

Not without its cost, and our hearts go out to all of you – all of US - who have been affected by the Covid-19 in some way. We were all in lockdown, together but apart. For some of us it was a relief from the hustle bustle of everyday, for some of us it was a lonely, scary time. Some felt crowded in a confined space, some felt lonely, possibly even in that crowded space. All of us have been affected financially in some way, and the Zenders team appreciate the café SOS supporters, as we do the people who have made a determined effort to ‘shop local’ and popped in for a coffee or lunch. Our wider network of people have been incredibly caring and supportive, and we appreciate every gesture. Plus we just like making our customers happy, so enjoy having you over at ‘our place’. Simply, we want you to know we appreciate you.

However it has affected you and your family, lockdown has made us all reassess what is important in life (coffee!), what we can actually live without (real coffee?!), and what we are ready to make a priority from now on (coffee dates!). Yes, we can work from home, shop online, watch Netflix without going to the movies, zoom family instead of visit, but I don’t think many would disagree that there is nothing like a hug, a handshake, a face-to-face chat, a smile, a catch up over coffee.

For us at Zenders it has made us reassess what we do, how we do it, and WHY we are doing it. We missed our family of staff, but have used the time well to school up on the business of hospitality. We keep coming back to the need to get together, connect and celebrate. Every day is an occasion!