Bendigo cafe and retail openings highlight demand for local service sector roles

Everbean Cafe will begin takeaway service next week from 1 Queen Street in the former Gillies Pie Shop building, while Crooked Kitchen prepares to open a dine-in site next to Rosalind Park at the old Park Corner location on February 11.

These additions arrive alongside three retail launches at Kangaroo Flat: Officeworks has opened a 1,600-square-metre store at the Homemaker Centre, nearly double its prior size; Plush has started trading at the same centre; and Beacon Lighting has unveiled a new showroom on High Street next to its existing outlet.

Service and retail roles expand with new venues

Small and medium enterprises make up more than 95 percent of registered businesses in Greater Bendigo, with hospitality and retail listed among the main sectors. The local micro-business segment, defined as firms with one to four employees, recorded a 2.3 percent rise over the past two years. New cafe and store openings supply concrete sites where these firms can add customer-facing positions without requiring large capital outlays.

Be.Bendigo, the local chamber of commerce, maintains an online directory that lists suppliers and service providers, giving job seekers a direct route to contact the operators of these recently opened outlets. The directory covers the same neighbourhoods where the new venues are located, including Queen Street in the CBD and the Kangaroo Flat Homemaker Centre precinct.

Workforce implications for established operators

The Bendigo Business Excellence Awards include a Small and Succeeding category that recognises firms with two to ten employees that continue to grow while retaining staff. Operators at the new sites can draw on the same support networks already used by award recipients in hospitality and retail. Greater Bendigo recorded 270 major projects with a combined value of 1.6 billion dollars scheduled to begin construction between 2024 and 2026, creating an overlapping pipeline of commercial space that sustains demand for trained service workers.

Businesses seeking staff or training pathways can consult the Be.Bendigo directory or review the fixed food business register maintained by the City of Greater Bendigo to identify active operators in their immediate area.