Prospect Road defies 2020’s COVID-19 downturn as shops and eateries thrive

Though 2020 was rough for a lot of businesses, many of them are now thriving on Prospect Road after getting a hand up through the pandemic.

Zaynn Bird opened Stax Burger on Prospect Rd in August. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

The pandemic might have caused the demise of countless hospitality and retail outlets across the nation, but not so at Prospect Road where business is thriving.

In the past six months, about a dozen businesses have either expanded or opened on the shopping-and-dining strip, which stretches from Harrington St to Gladstone Rd.

The success recently culminated in the precinct being named the People’s Choice in the 2020 Mainstreet SA Awards.

It is the second consecutive year Prospect Road has received the honour, and it will this year be inducted in the Mainstreet SA Hall of Fame.

Prospect Mayor David O’Loughlin said the road had thrived during the pandemic.

He said business operators were attracted to the area because they could see locals were embracing their local strip and visitors were flocking to it from far afield.

“It has become what it always should have been, an attractive destination for foodies and fashion …” Mr O’Loughlin said.

New businesses to open include the Nook Eatery and Stax Burger Co, while Anchovy Bandit has tripled in size and Meze Mazi and Wassail Wine Bar have both doubled their footprint.

Prospect Council chief executive Nigel McBride said vacancy rates along Prospect Road were now at 7 per cent – the second lowest of any strip in metropolitan Adelaide.

He said when COVID-19 hit in March, the council mobilised quickly to launch Prospect Delivers, a program which gave $25 vouchers to vulnerable and elderly residents to spend at local cafes and restaurants.

Mr McBride said 25 businesses took part in the initiative, which injected about $85,000 into the local economy.

“It also created a nice bond between local businesses and the elderly people,” he said.

Cafes are also springing up on nearby Churchill and Main North roads.

Street delivers plenty of business bite

Stax Burger Co founder Zaynn Bird says business has been “pumping” in the six months since he opened an outlet on Prospect Rd.

Mr Bird, who launched his burger business in his hometown of Mount Gambier in 2018, opened a restaurant in the Palace Nova Cinema complex in August.

“I love it up here,” Mr Bird said. “The street has always got people on it.”

It was a chance meeting with the women from Almina’s on Prospect when they were passing through Mount Gambier that put the retail strip on Mr Bird’s radar.

“We were getting asked by people in Adelaide, Perth and Queensland to open a store there and those requests just put Prospect in my mind,” he said.

“So when it came to actually expanding, I looked in Prospect.”

First impressions were that Prospect Rd was a “pretty street” that fitted his brand.

“It’s classy, we’re classy – it’s not just a street, it’s got some life to it,” he said.

Mr Bird, who has since closed the Mount Gambier outlet, started cooking at age 10, mostly for his parents.

“Then I ate a burger when I was 15 up in Adelaide and so I started to make burgers for myself, which turned into making them for friends, which turned into one friend saying, ‘you should sell them’,” Mr Bird said.

“And here we are.”

He described running a business on Prospect Rd as the “best thing”, particularly the interaction with the customers.

“I reckon I’m the weirdest business owner ever but they love it,” Mr Bird said.

“You get travellers … but the Prospect Rd locals are just chill.”

Mr Bird was considering opening another Stax Burger Co restaurant, and next month will visit Perth to suss out opportunities.