DESPITE tough times, one Swan Hill business is spreading cheer and paying it forward – one coffee at a time.
Corinne Barr of Xena Fitness started her “pay it forward coffee for a stranger” initiative during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In December, 2019 she had just purchased the business and was looking forward to the challenges it would present.
“I recognised we needed something like this for local women and when the opportunity arose, I embraced it,” Ms Barr said.
Little did she know, the biggest challenge to face her new business would come in the way of a worldwide pandemic.
Within months of taking over the business, she was forced to close its doors and endure the continuous cycle of lockdowns and statewide restrictions throughout 2020 and 2021.
“It’s been very hard,” Ms Barr said, adding her memberships dropped to one third of what they were prior to the pandemic.
Determined not to give up without a fight, Ms Barr began to think of innovative ways to stay afloat.
“I had to think of different ways to diversify,” Ms Barr said.
She established her smoothie and coffee bar in 2021, and while it was a huge success, Ms Barr wanted to do more to support others.
“The pay it forward initiative was a way of supporting each other during a tough time,” she said.
“It was a way to give back to the local community.”
It didn’t take long for the initiative to take off, with residents throwing their support behind the random act of kindness.
As lockdowns began to lift, Ms Barr distributed the donated coffees among industries which were hardest hit by the pandemic.
She delivered coffees to police manning the borders, hairdressers who were also forced to close during the lockdowns and fatigued supermarket and health care employees.
Ms Barr said the community was very appreciative of the gesture, which enabled strangers to spread kindness and gratitude during difficult times.
While Ms Barr is starting to come out the other side of the pandemic, she said times were still tough and it would take some time before many small businesses could fully recover from the impact of the restrictions and lockdowns.
In the meantime, the “pay it forward coffee” campaign continues to thrive, while Xena fitness also continues to evolve.
“It’s provided a sense of self-worth and pride and makes you feel warm and fuzzy knowing you are making a difference,” Ms Barr said.
