Tamworth's businesses dealt tough double whammy with 2021 NCHA 4CYTE Futurity, AgQuip postponements

But a double whammy of two big ticket event delays for the region within 24 hours is particularly hard to swallow for the local hospitality and accommodation industry.

On Tuesday, the National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) made the tough call to postpone its Tamworth futurity - which had been due to attract more than 500 competitors to AELEC from July 26 to August 8 - amid Sydney's COVID-19 outbreak.

The multi-million dollar blow for Tamworth came less than 24-hours after the postponement of Australia's largest agricultural field days, AgQuip.

The loss of the futurity alone comes at an estimated cost of $3 million to the Tamworth economy, whereas the ripple effect of AgQuip being moved is estimated to be in the tens of millions of dollars.

Just weeks after restrictions were re-introduced, local tourism providers were banking on the two events to remain profitable, but instead are faced with more cancellations.

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Stockman's Motel, which is also the home ground for Carmen's 'A little taste of Italy' restaurant, has already been heavily impacted.

Motel manager Margaret O'Sullivan said the business has gone from being fully booked for the futurity and AgQuip, and having people on a waiting list, to now just three or four bookings.

"For us personally we're probably going to lose $30,000 just in the rooms and then all the collateral because we've got the restaurant as well," she said.

"It's a huge, huge loss for us. We get a lot for both events because we've got the big area, so people can come out and have their floats and trailers.

"Having them back-to-back postponed, we're going to have to be putting staff on leave just so we can keep the business open...we'll have to go back to absolute skeleton staff."

Up the road, City Lights Caravan Park owner Deborah Norris said the phone has not stopped ringing with cancellations.

"It's shocking, it's like a morgue here, all the workers had to go home due to different situations with the borders and COVID, and every day the phone starts ringing at 8am with cancellations," she said.

Behind Tamworth Country Music Festival, the futurity is the park's biggest event for bookings, but local sporting events have helped to prop up their numbers.

"The sporting events are fantastic, people come from all over from them," Mrs Norris added.

Both organisers are hoping to hold their events later in 2021.

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