Be.Bendigo poll reveals Omicron pain in Bendigo business community

The COVID-19 virus strain has blighted what many had hoped would be a post-Christmas surge in trade, Be.Bendigo interim chief executive Rob Stephenson said.

"January ... has not seen the levels of trade that many had hoped for, after an extremely tough 2021," he said.

More than 70 per cent of businesses said a lack of rapid antigen tests had impacted their ability to staff workplaces, the Be.Bendigo survey published on Tuesday has uncovered.

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Four out of five respondents reported a staff member and close contacts affected by COVID-19 diagnoses.

About 70 per cent of respondents reported feeling Omicron's impact on their business income.

A surge in COVID-19 cases linked to the Omicron and Delta variants saw 1334 active COVID-19 cases in Bendigo at the height of the latest surge, with no guarantee cases will not rise again as school returns.

Sales and turnover had been dampened by people with COVID-19 - and their close contacts - who have been isolating, as well as businesses asking staff to work from home.

Retailers were already heading into January facing a dampened sales climate, Bureau of Statistics data revealed on the same day Be-Bendigo published its survey results.

Retail turnover fell 4.4 per cent in December, the seasonally adjusted figures suggest.

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It was the largest monthly fall since the pandemic's early days in April 2020, though the bureau has cautioned that retail sales are still elevated compared to pre-pandemic levels.

"Retail turnover remains strong, up 4.8 per cent on December 2020, with strong consumer spending continuing post the Delta outbreak," director of quarterly economy wide statistics Ben James said.

That said, the bureau noticed softer trading conditions emerging towards the end of December when consumers began holding back spending and Omicron cases began rapidly rising throughout Australia.

Only one retail industry made gains during the month.

That was the "food retailing" category, which includes supermarkets and liquor stores.

Household goods retailing, clothing and footwear, department stores, hospitality and "other retailing" industries had falls that ate into previous months' gains.

The analysis might lend weight to Be.Bendigo's calls for more state and federal assistance to help businesses dealing with Omicron's headwinds.

Some survey respondents felt governments did not appreciate the financial impacts on their bottom line, which Mr Stephenson said were potentially worse than the original or Delta variants despite no formal lockdowns.

"Be.Bendigo urges governments at both state and federal level to consider the particular financial issues that many businesses are currently facing, and consider supporting them through to the long-awaited COVID recovery phase," he said.

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