Wagga RSL club back from the pandemic 'stronger than ever'

Never let a crisis go to waste. The Wagga RSL Club certainly didn’t.

COVID-19 decimated the hospitality industry the world over and one of the Riverina’s leading social meeting places was no exception. But according to General Manager Andrew Bell, it has come back stronger than ever.

“We feel like we have grown and developed into a better business and better venue for our members, partly because of COVID-19,” he says.

Along with the rest of regional NSW, Wagga was locked down for a combined total of 12 weeks over the past two years of the pandemic. Business died as customers took refuge in their homes.

The RSL went from a full house to delivering Chinese takeaway. But management was determined not to lose staff.

“We made a commitment to our staff during the first lockdown that we would look after them,” Andrew says.

“We knew that when it came time to reopen, the staff would be very important in that. We looked after them and made every attempt to consider each of their personal circumstances.”

Staff were encouraged to participate in regular catch-ups, drinks evenings and exercise classes over Zoom to keep morale high.

“A small number also took turns sitting at the reception desk, phoning members to make sure they were coping okay,” Andrew says.

Beyond the money, Andrew understands what a job in hospitality means better than most. He started as a doorman in a bowling club in Mathoura “many, many years” ago. From there it was onto his first RSL club in Deniliquin as assistant manager.

“In the early 1990s, they were looking at upgrading to computers and I had some experience with computers,” he says.

“I moved up the ranks before coming to Wagga 24 years ago.”

As with RSL clubs throughout Australia, the Wagga Club’s primary purpose is to provide a venue for current and ex-serve personnel and their families to enjoy a safe and comfortable place to gather and share a meal and a drink or two, or maybe three.

Andrew says it’s about being a strong community member, especially for a club located alongside residential homes.

“Right up the top of our priorities is to be a good neighbour,” he says.

“We don’t want our immediate neighbours to regret living in close proximity to the Club. We also want to contribute to the community.”

The Club’s dining is divided into three areas: the Pearl Chinese Restaurant, Henry’s Café and Henry’s on Goonigul Restaurant. There is, of course, the bar, as well as accommodation and entertainment options.

“Everything a good club needs to provide for its members,” Andrew says.

The management team kept working throughout the pandemic, leaping on the opportunity to make significant changes to the business model.

“We ended up closing our satellite club because we couldn’t work out how to turn a profit with it,” he says.

“We looked at the smaller cost centres right through to the bigger issues.”

The change could have proven a mistake once customers started walking through the doors again, but Andrew describes the response as “fantastic”.

“We received huge support from our members when we finally reopened,” he says.

“The last few months have been absolutely brilliant as people start travelling again.”

The fear of catching COVID-19 might be waning now, but in those early days, Andrew says other clubs in the area initially struggled to get customers back. Not so for Wagga RSL.

“We gave a lot of publicity to cleaning the club,” he says.

“We imposed the protocol quite harshly so people would feel secure. Other clubs and pubs didn’t seem to be as dedicated and the locals didn’t respond well to that.”

The Wagga RSL is located on the corner of Kincaid Street and Dobbs Street and is open from 8 am to 12 am, Sunday to Wednesday and 8 am to 3 am, Thursday to Saturday. Visit the website for more information.

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