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It is a call for help, according to the open letter that IG-Gastro Schweiz Basel delivered to the city council on Thursday afternoon. The governing council is asked to provide emergency assistance quickly and without bureaucracy.
Many companies are on the edge
Margins in gastronomy are small and many companies hardly have reserves. And the promised help has not yet arrived. Here’s what restaurateur Simon Lutz and Berest CEO Johann Rudolf Meier had to say Thursday afternoon in the now-closed Baracca Zermatt.
Meier complains, for example, that the funds previously spoken by the canton only refer to the first blockade. When the stages were discussed, it was not yet known that there would be another lockdown in winter. And even if restaurants had to be closed for four weeks before Christmas, fixed costs would continue to run.
Obstacles too big
Simon Lutz is bothered by the fact that the obstacles to obtaining federal funding are very high. A loss of sales of 40 percent must be proven. Many restaurants that have tried a bit over the summer not to completely slide would have suffered a minor loss. But even a minor loss could threaten the existence of the company. To make matters worse, a statement on annual turnover is only possible after the balance sheet at the end of the year. Therefore, aid payments will only be paid the following year. Restaurants would have to pay for certain items, like the thirteenth monthly salary, in December.
Gourmet from all walks of life
The 60 restaurateurs on the open menu include almost all of Basel’s gastronomic celebrities. The list includes, for example: Johnny Freeman (Bodega zum Strauss), Andreas Schürmann (Zum wilde Maa), Adriano Giordano (zur Mägd), Christoph Lehmann (Viertel-Kreis), Robert Schroeder (Zum narrow berth) and even Tanja Grandits ( Restaurant Stucki) and Lotti Weber (Restaurant Torstübli) have signed the open letter.
The president of the host association is also one of the signatories. When asked, Maurus Ebneter says that it is usually enough for the association to deal with politics. The situation is now so dramatic that companies need to get involved in the discussion.
The open letter was delivered to the City Council this afternoon. The Basel Department of Economic, Social and Environmental Affairs declined to comment on the open letter of request, but notes that the first money from the crisis fund has been paid to various companies since yesterday.
