Cosmo managing director Kyle Fitzsimmons the February snap lockdown devasted the accomodation booking business which had full occupancy over the Valentine's Day weekend.

Mr Fitzsimmons applied for the state government package during the February snap lockdown and was told the $2000 cash flow boost would come through in a matter of weeks, but he's still waiting.

"I'm still holding my breath for the first package," he said.

We're still recovering and the timing between the two lockdowns hasn't been that great.

"The problem is, if we can't get the new funding this time around within a month, that will have such a detrimental impact. How many businesses will survive?"

OTHER READS:

The new round of business support funding offers grants of $2500 for eligible businesses, including restaurants, cafes, event suppliers, accommodation providers, and non-essential retailers.

Mr Fitzsimmons said he'd like to see more forward planning from the state government to better prepare for future lockdowns, and action from the federal government now that JobKeeper has gone.

"What I've been hearing a lot is that for every five days of lockdown, it takes a month to recover," he said. "That's challenging, for some businesses it's their whole business gone and 10, 20 to $30,000 disappears overnight.

"If I was in the government's position, I'd already have a package model and change the parameters, but it seems there's no forward thinking; we're always playing catch up.

"The federal government also needs to step up and offer workers support with no JobKeeper now."

Mr Fitzsimmons said he would be applying for the new round of funding once applications open and hoped other businesses were prepared for a long wait for the payments.

"We've adapted our business to know the funding might not come in straightaway, but for others it could be detrimental," he said. "I'll be really surprised if we receive this grant before the February one."

Acting Premier James Merlino announced the $250 million package on Sunday and said it would cover a range of businesses in the hospitality, retail, and events sectors.

MORE NEWS:

Member for Bendigo East Jacinta Allan said the small and medium sized business support package had been developed with industry insiders.

"The design and development of the $250 million business support package is based on consultations with industry and business groups about where the prioirty support needed to focus on the businesses and industries that have been hit harder than others," she said.

"That's why we have seen a particular focus on hospitality and events industries as part of this package."

Ms Allan hoped the federal government would support casual workers through a support package which they had previously done through the 2020 coronavrius lockdowns.

"It has been really disappointing that the federal government has chosen this time to not play the role that they played last time to provide income support to workers effected by this lockdown," she said.

"There is clearly a role for the federal government to play and we will continue to urge them to play that role.

"It's clear there are some people in our community who need that support again and we really implore the federal government to look at the role the state's playing; we're contributing $250 million in targetted support to the groups we can supply support to, and there's still that role there for the federal government to play."

Businesses can register their interest in the Business Costs Assistance Program at business.vic.gov.au, so they can be notified when applications open this week.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content:

Have you signed up to the Bendigo Advertiser's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in central Victoria.