For Ottawa restaurateur Anish Mehra, this week has been unusually slow. Next week, he says, will be a completely different story.
That’s because the federal government’s “tax holiday” is creating a hectic December schedule for Mehra and other restaurateurs.
Last month, the federal government announced a “GST holiday” on a slew of items from Dec. 14 to Feb. 15 as a way to support Canadian consumers. The tax break will apply to a number of goods and services, including children’s clothing and shoes, toys, diapers, restaurant meals, and beer and wine.
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Some provinces, such as Ontario, have also committed to matching the federal government’s tax break by removing the harmonized sales tax, making some products completely tax-free for the two-month period.
Mehra, owner of the East India Company restaurant with two locations in Ottawa, told OBJ Tuesday that the beginning of the month has been slow, with customers holding off until after Saturday to dine out.
“Everyone’s trying to rebook next week. Nobody wanted to book with us this week and a little bit last week. So we have had a bit of a slowdown during what is normally a busy Christmas party season,” he said.
“What’s happening is that it’s creating a bit of a hectic and busy period next week. I love it, but I just don’t have enough seats next week. Normally, I like to spread that business throughout all of December, whereas now I’m having to try to squeeze everyone into what is 10 days before Christmas.”
Meals at restaurants are among the list of eligible items, as well as beer, wine and sake that are 22.9 per cent ABV or less and pre-mixed alcoholic beverages that are seven per cent ABV or less.
Some items at Mehra’s restaurants will not be eligible for the tax break, meaning he has the tedious task of adjusting the items in his point-of-sale system one-by-one.
“I will be spending a little bit of time on our (POS) system, which is going to probably take a couple hours to do at each location,” he said.
He says he is also making sure he has enough staff to tend to the number of hungry patrons expected to file in next week.
At the end of the day, Mehra says he hopes people will take advantage of the tax break. “I’m hoping that people come in and take advantage of the tax holidays and maybe buy a little bit more,” he said.
While he says he is “appreciative” of what governments are doing to help, there is more that could be done.
“I think there are other things they can do that would help us as well. More industry consults would be great, so that when they come up with programs like this, it is both a win for them and a win for us,” Mehra said.
Kelly Higginson, president and CEO of Restaurants Canada said in a statement last month that the food service industry is pleased with the “tax holiday,” saying it will boost sales by nearly $1 billion over the two-month period.
“The timing of the initiative is especially important, as it aligns with a typically challenging time for restaurants. January and February sales are on average more than 10 per cent lower than other times of year, so giving Canadians a reason to go out in the cold of winter is a great support to our industry and increases the quality of Canadians’ day-to-day lives,” Higginson said in the statement.