18/08/2026
I want to talk about something that has been commented on a lot.
Yes, the owners of the building, Paul and Jo, may ultimately have the power to make decisions about their property. And we have our own feelings about how everything has been handled.
But this is bigger than just them. And it’s bigger than just us.
What about Culcairn?
What about the other small businesses?
What about our teenagers?
What about our community?
When you support one small business in a country town, that money rarely stops at the front door.
We get our medical supplies from our local pharmacy.
We buy our meat products from the local butcher.
We buy our soft drinks, bread and other supplies from FoodWorks.
I don’t even live in Culcairn, yet I regularly fill my car at the local servo.
That money goes back into our town.
When our doors close, it isn’t only our business that loses income. Other local businesses lose a customer too.
Our teenage staff members lose their jobs — in a town where young people don’t exactly have endless employment opportunities waiting for them.
Local workers and families lose another place to grab fish and chips, loaded fries or a battered sav for lunch or dinner.
And people from surrounding communities, including Henty and beyond, who come into Culcairn to visit us don’t just spend money with us. They stop at other businesses while they’re here.
That is the ripple effect of a small business in a small town.
But there is something even more important than money.
Community.
Community isn’t simply a collection of people who happen to have the same postcode.
Community is walking down the street and saying g’day to the same faces you’ve known for years.
It’s knowing someone’s usual order before they even have to say it.
It’s asking, “How have you been?” and actually caring about the answer.
It’s teenagers getting their first job, learning responsibility and becoming part of the working community.
It’s locals standing at the counter having a yarn while they’re waiting for dinner.
It’s seeing someone having a rough day and giving them somewhere familiar to walk into.
It’s laughter, conversations, familiar faces and people looking out for one another.
That’s what small-town community is.
And when another small business disappears, we don’t just lose another shopfront.
We lose another little piece of the town.
We lose jobs.
We lose money being spent locally.
Other businesses lose trade.
And we lose another place where people gather, talk and belong.
Small towns like Culcairn survive because we need each other.
The pharmacy needs customers.
The butcher needs customers.
FoodWorks needs customers.
The servo needs customers.
The cafés, pub, tradies and every other small business need customers.
And we need them too.
That is how a small town survives — by supporting one another.
So while people may look at this situation and think, “It’s only one takeaway shop closing,” to us, it represents something much bigger.
It’s another set of doors closing in a small country town.
Another group of young people without a job.
Another local business no longer buying from other local businesses.
Another meeting place gone.
Another light switched off.
We have been incredibly lucky to serve this community, and we’ll forever be grateful to every person who walked through our doors, ordered a meal, had a laugh, stopped for a chat or simply chose to spend their hard-earned money with us.
Because you weren’t just supporting our business.
You were helping support Culcairn.
And that’s why this hurts so much.
Because we’re not just saying goodbye to a business.
We’re saying goodbye to our little place within this community. ❤️
