Belonging - The New Business Metric?
How do our local brick-and-mortar businesses survive in an era where everyone seems locked into Netflix, hooked on Uber Eats, and consuming art online? Is creating a genuine sense of "belonging" the ultimate secret sauce for high street longevity, or is it just another buzzword that doesn't translate to small business reality?
Event Details
Date: Wednesday, 17 June 2026
Time: 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Location: Dendy Cinemas, Newtown (in their recently reopened events space, the former cafe on King Street)
Catering: Delicious local bites and drinks provided
Atmosphere: Tunes and beats curated by Foxy Fuzz
The Panel
A stellar lineup of local leaders, creatives, and operators from across our footprint who are unpacking what community connection actually looks like on the ground:
Claire Van Vuuren – Owner and Chef, Bloodwood
Yumi Lee – CEO, Older Women's Network
Amy Low – CEO, The Social Outfit
Blanca Perera – Co-owner, Olotl
Amelia Birch – Founder, Famelia Wines
Juana Granados AKA Foxy Fuzz – DJ and Creative
Put Belonging into Action: Love Where You Live
During the evening, we also heard briefly from the CEO of the Sydney Community Foundation, who reminded us of something simple but powerful: belonging doesn’t happen by accident. We have an immediate opportunity to turn the themes of our panel into tangible local action through their Love Where You Live campaign, where every dollar donated is matched.
The campaign is raising vital funds for three incredible organisations operating right in our backyard: Newtown Neighbourhood Centre, Plate It Forward, and The Social Outfit.
What We Learned: Purpose vs. Complacency
The conversation on the night was brilliant, highlighting that Newtown, Enmore, and Erskineville attract a distinct type of business owner. There is a genuine sense of custodianship across our footprint. So many of our operators naturally approach business in a reciprocal way, focusing on what they give back to the community rather than operating in a purely transactional mindset. Being deeply purposeful was the clear, overarching strategy that every single panellist deployed.
However, the night also delivered a vital reality check. We cannot afford to be complacent about our precinct’s combined capacity to deliver this sense of connection. As broader market forces shift and the economic climate tightens, the world around us is moving rapidly toward the transactional.
It left us with a heavy, crucial question: If we can't define what belonging looks like on the ground, can we successfully defend and keep it?
Thank you so much to everyone who joined us at Dendy Cinemas for our first panel and networking session last week. It was an incredible turnout, and the energy in the room made it clear just how deeply we all care about the future of our precinct.
A massive thank you to our hosts at Dendy Cinemas for sharing their beautifully revitalised event space with us, to Marani Deli for keeping us fed with such incredible local catering, and to La Foxy Fuzz for setting the perfect tone with Latin vinyl beats.
Most of all, I want to extend a huge thank you to our phenomenal panellists, Claire, Yumi, Amy, Blanca, Amelia, and Juana, for sharing their time, raw honesty, and immense wisdom.
17th June 2026
Dendy Cinemas Newtown
261-263 King St, Newtown 2042