Covid-19 impact: Whisky & Cola mix to lift restaurant workers' spirits

NEW DELHI | MUMBAI: Altruism and self-interest have led some major soft drink and liquor brands to help India’s struggling restaurant industry. Restaurants account for close to 50% of the sales of major food and alcohol brands.Industry estimates peg the restaurant sector’s job losses at 2 million. Many establishments are facing the threat of permanent closure. Alcohol still cannot be served in restaurants, which also have restricted timings.PepsiCo has partnered with online food delivery platform Swiggy and National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) to launch a programme #SaveOurRestaurants on Thursday. With the order of any soft drink, juice or iced tea on Swiggy, the multinational company will contribute to NRAI’s employee relief fund.A PepsiCo India spokesperson said the company will “work with” some Bollywood actors and other “influencers” to encourage consumers to add a beverage to their food delivery order.76615779Swiggy says it has its own help programme — the ‘jumpstart’ package — which will offer safety kits and what the company called ‘business booster programmes’ at “heavily subsidised rates”.Diageo, maker of Johnnie Walker and Black Dog whiskies, announced a Rs 75 crore fund under its global “raising the bar” programme for restaurants and bars. The liquor company’s managing director Anand Kripalu said the fund is aimed at helping restaurants and bars as they adjust to harsh realities of post-Covid pandemic business.Premium spirits company Beam Suntory, maker of Jim Beam whisky among other products, has pledged Rs 1 crore for a programme for bartenders.Upskilling BartendersThe ‘learn and earn’ programme, the company says, is aimed at upskilling bartenders by encouraging them to take online courses. Beam Suntory India managing director Neeraj Kumar said, “Our partners in the F&B community…they are our greatest champions.” Last month, Brown-Forman, maker of Jack Daniel’s, launched an online crowdfunding tip-jar initiative aimed at raising money for bartenders and wait staff community.“We intend to utilise this fund towards ensuring benefit to those who are directly affected by the present crisis; this contribution adds significant heft to our corpus,” said Rahul Singh, NRAI trustee.

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