Coronavirus crisis: Richard Goyder urges struggling businesses to reinvent themselves on Channel 7’s Flashpoint

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Corporate heavyweight Richard Goyder is urging coronavirus-stricken businesses to be agile and think outside the box, saying those who can reinvent themselves will not only survive but could even thrive from the crisis.

The respected WA businessman — chairman of Qantas Airways, Woodside Petroleum, the AFL Commission, and Telethon — last night shared his insights with the owners of three businesses that have changed tack on Channel 7’s Flashpoint program.

“It’s businesses that react hard, that move fast, and do what you need to do quickly that will come out of this OK,” Mr Goyder said.

After social distancing restrictions put an end to live shows, actor-comedian Peter Rowsthorn changed gear completely and secured his trucking licence.

“I was coming back from Melbourne… by the time I got off the plane and checked my phone I had lost around about $40,000 worth of work at this period in the diary,” he told Flashpoint.

“By the end of that next week, all of it had gone.”

Rowsthorn is a teacher by trade but comes from a trucking family. When his brother called offering him a job, he didn’t hesitate.

“Like a lot of people in Australia at the moment I’ve got a mortgage, I’ve got bills and they never stop,” Rowsthorn said.

“I feel really unnerved by it but at the same time I think I’ve got the wherewithal to get through it and learn from it and be better from it.”

Perth dress makers Erin Taylor and Kate Wilks, who run local fashion label ILKA, are also rising to the COVID-19 challenge — the duo have traded making bridal gowns for hospital scrubs.

“When we heard the news of gatherings being reduced from 500 to 100 to five people it definitely hit home,” Ms Wilks said.

“If we hadn’t had the initiative to do the scrubs and advertise it to a broader demographic we wouldn’t be here.”

The owners of The Wembley Hotel in Perth’s western suburbs have also found a way to lift business by launching an online shop where patrons can purchase take-away food.

Mr Goyder praised each of the businesses, saying that each one had “dug deep” in “really adverse circumstances”.

“We’re having to make really tough, hard decisions but there is a way through this,” he said.

“We’re on the doorstep of the growth markets of the world. We’ve got great educated people, great health system, brilliant companies and a community spirit that will take us out of this.

“There will have been some hard lessons but Western Australia will be a really strong place when we come out of this pandemic.”