All Day Cravings Café means everything to Jeff Tong. His wife even says that he’s “married to the shop”. So, when COVID-19 hit, he did everything he could to save it.

For nine years, Jeff has been serving freshly made sandwiches, burgers, breakfasts, salads and hot meals to the local community and industrial workers of Glendenning in Greater Western Sydney.

It’s not just a business to him – it’s his passion.

“A lot of people are doing a café for the money, for a living,” Jeff tells Kochie’s Business Builders. “But doing a café for food service is more of my hobby.”

Despite his humble approach, Jeff is serious about making his food business work long term. So, in November 2019, he decided to purchase the café premises with settlement set for July 2020.

Then COVID-19 happened.

“We were forced to close. We didn’t know what to do,” Jeff recalls. “[We had] so many overheads, so many bills to pay – I was so panicked.

“At that stage I was going to call [the sale] off because I didn’t think I was going to come up with enough money to support my goal, which was purchasing the building.”

The boiling point for Jeff’s café

Food preparation is Jeff’s passion. Image: Supplied.

Making the settlement was Jeff’s main pressure point, but he faced a cocktail of other problems too.

As social distancing measures came into place, Jeff offered takeaway-only service, but the lack of foot traffic dramatically reduced his sales. On top of that, cashflow and shortage of supplies stretched Jeff to his limit.

“I couldn’t purchase from my suppliers. I had to go to shopping centres, to markets, to Costco and Woolies to find the stock,” Jeff explains.

“My costs in normal times was about $2000 a week, so I’d have to pay everything upfront instead of paying it two or four weeks later. Not to mention the price jumped as well. Not just toilet paper – I don’t sell toilet paper! For example, chicken jumped from $4.50 per kilo to roughly $14 per kilo.”

Desperate to get his business back on track, Jeff discussed his options with Westpac business banker, Weiwei He. She suggested he could consider applying for the Federal Government’s SME Guarantee Loan Scheme that assists businesses impacted by Coronavirus with recovery and growth.

How an SME Guarantee Loan helped

All Day Cravings Cafe in Glendenning, Western Sydney. Image: Supplied.

In this case, within a week, Westpac approved a $66,000 loan for Jeff under Phase 1 of the SME Guarantee Loan Scheme. It was this move that helped him pay rent, keep his staff and buy the supplies he needed.

But most importantly, he was able to successfully acquire the shop with the help of Westpac’s SME loan.

“With the SME business loan, at least I know there’s someone looking after me,” he says. “Because $66,000 can help support me for at least half a year. So with that half a year’s support in front of me I’m willing to do everything I can to keep my neck above water.

“That’s the shop that has all my goals and dreams and everything. I don’t want to just let it go. So I have my faith back.”

A new catering clientele

Jeff Tong’s catering side of his business has grown. Image: Supplied.

Now, in May 2021, Jeff’s business is growing in ways he couldn’t have predicted. The demand for catering has increased, jumping from 10 per cent of his revenue to 30 per cent.

One of Jeff’s catering contracts is with various local police branches including the Parramatta Police, who love fresh sandwiches and muffins, all hygienically wrapped (“highway patrol prefer a lot of sweets, cakes and donuts”).

The only downside? Instead of his normal start time of 5am, Jeff’s getting up at 2am.

“I’d rather come in early in the morning to make sure everything’s fresh, everything’s good for my customers, especially catering for the police,” he says.

But that may be short term, as Jeff is currently hiring more staff. Jeff is also in the process of having his Phase 2 SME Guarantee Loan approved by Westpac, which will help him upgrade his equipment including hiring a new van and renovating the shop.

What small businesses can do if they need help

For small businesses like Jeff’s, there is a short time left to apply for Phase 2 of the SME Guarantee Loan Scheme, which is available until 30 June 2021.

Under the scheme, businesses with an annual turnover of less than $50 million can apply for secured loans of up to $1 million and unsecured loans of up to $75,000.

Businesses impacted by COVID-19 rolling off JobKeeper payments can apply for the most recent Government SME Recovery Loan Scheme to help with low-rate funding, with loans available of up to $5 million until 31 December 2021.

Check your eligibility and enquire about small business loan with Westpac today.

This content is brought to you by Kochie’s Business Builders in partnership with Westpac.

*This scheme is available for applications approved prior to 30 June 2021.

This information is general in nature and has been prepared without taking your objectives, needs and overall financial situation into account. For this reason, you should consider the appropriateness of the information to your own circumstances and, if necessary, seek appropriate professional advice. 

Conditions, credit criteria and fees and charges apply, credit provided by Westpac Banking Corporation ABN 33 007 457 141 AFSL and Australians credit license 233714