Could More Businesses Follow in the Wake of Vic Books?

Words by Niamh Vaughan (she/her)

The upcoming closure of Vic Books has left many questioning the future of other campus businesses. 

Businesses rely on students attending university in-person, which has declined in recent years. The continual rise in the cost of living has made university less accessible to students. Paired with the failure of the university’s new applications system, enrollments are lower than ever, and businesses are unsure where they stand. 

A spokesperson for The Lab told Salient that business is down 40% and they are at their “lowest point”  since pre-Covid-19 times. Business owners are keeping an eye on the situation. “Everybody’s waiting for things to get busier,” they said, “everybody’s watching everybody else.”

Things may be improving, as on the first day of Trimester 1, new students returned to campus in strong numbers. A spokesperson for Krishna Food, Tulavati, said, “seeing all of these students back gave us a bit of hope.” 

Tulavati says that Krishna Food’s business is currently only about 25% of what it has been in the past. Due to renovations, they had to close their Pipitea branch at the start of 2022.

The Labs spokesperson told Salient that university-based businesses rely on the “busy season”, the time when courses are running and students are coming up to campus everyday. In-person attendance hasn't quite recovered since the Covid-19 pandemic. Both the Lab and Krishna Food confirmed they had received rent relief from the university during lockdown, which helped to “minimise losses”, according to the Lab, during the height of the pandemic, yet neither business was able to make substantial money. 

According to The Lab’s spokesperson, “you have to be able to make use of the busy period in terms of cash flow. Over the quiet period, we are losing money and we have to use savings to cover those losses.”

Supporting campus businesses is more important than ever—one Uber Eats order is probably the equivalent of three Krishna plates. As Krishna food told Salient, “We understand the importance of having really good food. It helps students with anxiety and focus. We are here to help students.”