Posted on 03/15/2020 11:37:10 AM PDT by BuckeyeGOP
As a small business owner providing a discretionary home-improvement service I am hyper-focused on how corona could absolutely decimate small businesses, from landscaping to retail to restaraunts and so much more.
My observations, (I'm located in Central Ohio), are as follows. First, I am entering what is typically my busiest time of year. As soon as 2 weeks ago business was looking record strong for the coming year. Appointments and sold jobs were almost double what they were same time last year. Then last week everything went from rush to trickle. So far, somehow, I've managed to actually still get a couple of inquiries to set up appointments this week but phones are essentially dead.
From what I've seen, most people are running for the hills or sitting on their money....but there are a handful of people (customers) who are almost acting rebellious to all of this. Thank God for them.
I've sent all customers an email outlining our intention to stay true to our schedule unless we are forced not to. Some have asked that we don't come out.
Yesterday I talked with a friend who owns a landscape business. He literally sounded like he was going to cry. He saw the same thing I was noticing. Unlike me however, he had customers cancelling large jobs and wanting their deposits back. That plus the fact that the phone calls have stopped has him on a ledge.
I keep hearing this isn't like 2008 or 9/11. I agree, but that's because it's WORSE as far as I'm concerned. Why? Can anyone tell me how long this is going to last? It's like staring down a hallway full of smoke and you can't see where the exit is but your only chance to get out is to go down it.
This is a nightmare and it's going to take some VERY bold ideas from our government to save small business USA. I've never been one to look to the govt for anything. I think we just want help, maybe vast availability to low interest loans. I have some ideas I'll share at some point.
Would love to see other business owners here share their experience.
I believe things will pick up in two to three weeks, after that the supposed peak of the virus should pass. I don’t understand why businesses such as yours or your friend’s are being effected so much. Is it because people are laid off with no money for the jobs your friend can do?
Your governor freaking out about every little thing is NOT helping.
All of the hype, panic and fear WILL shut down the economy. Major overreaction, but I predicted we would have problems. Stock market not through crashing. Seems to be the goal of Democrats, get power at ALL cost.
I don’t understand why businesses such as yours or your friend’s are being effected so much. Is it because people are laid off with no money for the jobs your friend can do?
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Fear of the unknown closes a lot of wallets and checkbooks. Would you spend indiscretionately with everything that’s going on right now?
The media has everyone believing their retirements will be completely wiped out and the economy is crashing...last thing on people’s minds are new patios, pools, or kitchen remodels.
Wife’s office closed until April 1st. Working from home.
I do part time delivery like a Door Dash. We are limiting deliveries and customer contact.
Stupid PANIC!
In ten days I am to travel to AZ to begin the fair season. We already had two events cancel. St Patricks in Henderson and the Clark Co Fair in Logadale NV>
Our next event is Yuma (then was to be Clark Co.) followed by Tucson. Yuma will probably open come hell or high water. Tucson is following this closely.
What we don’t want to do is travel down south and have events close just before open. That has already happened to some of my friends at the Ostrich Festival and Blythe Fairs this week.
We have enough money to spend $50 a week for the next three months after bills and what not if we do not go. Our hope is that Placerville Fair in June will open as expected. If not...we are royally screwed
If we do go...we will have absolutely no safety net. If fairs close we might not be able to return home...and be stuck a thousand miles from home. Not a pleasant thought...
YEP!!!!!
Whew, hairdressers can open. Thank god for this essential service. /s
I have an online biz that depends on sporting events, concerts, etc. Friday I sent my website guy an email telling him to suspend everything. At the same time I told our vendor what we were doing and why. But!!!!! All my yearly expenses are due around the end of the month and first of April. Total about $4k. And I haven’t done our taxes yet but we usually wind up owing the feds about $10k. So yeah we’re screwed between refunding money for cancelled events and the rest of it.
Restaurants are hurting, especially in a college town like mine where the students are not returning from spring break as usual. At 5:30 on a Saturday night (yesterday), I drove by a Subway, McDonald’s and Taco Bell near campus. They are usually very busy at that time. There were a total of five cars in their parking lots and zero cars at their drive-through windows. It felt surreal. The McDonalds had ONE car in the parking lot. In my 30 years in this town, I have never seen that McDonald’s parking lot so empty, no matter what time of day. My wife said, “That’s looks scary.” Yes, it does.
April 15th is looming like a thunderstorm on the horizon.
I know how you feel about taxes due. We also have a 10k payment due then and typically in past years with new deposits and work coming in it’s not even a blip on the radar. This year it’s a 800 pound gorilla on my shoulder.
There will ALWAYS be business wiling to serve to get the edge.
I wonder how I can make a buck off of this thing if I don’t care about getting the virus.
They’re paying FOUR THOUSAND dollars to get injected with it but not in NY.
I’d do it in a blink.
How long until businesses are “social-distance-shamed” for not shutting down?
Does anyone doubt that happening? I don’t.
I know what you mean. Can still get beer. :)
Small businesses will be hurt, and there will be no government bailout for them. Small business owners know that their available resources are not infinite. When the cash flow dries up, the tax man, the employees, the bank, the landlord still want to get paid.
So you use your personal money to keep the business afloat, until that starts to affect your family. You don’t know if you should call it quits. Business will pick up again, but when? You might have gone bankrupt by then.
pelosi, obammy and the other marxists think that having a business is a license to print money, and they want as much of that money as they can get. Well, NO! We’ve been working for the government as long as we have had our businesses. We work long hours to pay employees, the bills and our intransigent silent partner who doesn’t ever lift a finger to help us out and never does a day’s work: the government.
The state of emergency started yesterday so they made up the list in haste and translated it to English. Hairdressers won’t be going to work but I know some people who aren’t mentioned that are going to try and work. We have an entrance way that was scheduled to be replastered on Tuesday. The person doing it texted today and said he will be there as promised.
When the cash flow dries up, the tax man, the employees, the bank, the landlord still want to get paid.
This is exactly where we’re at but you can add on refunding money for cancelled or soon to be cancelled venues. We have suspended all business because of the uncertainty. But the bills roll on. And their bullshat bill won’t help people like us at all. Matter of fact they’ll still want their $10k in taxes we’ll owe on April 15th.
Yeah, I’m pissed.
You could not design a more perfect way to destroy small businesses and thus the U.S. economy then what is happening.
I’m so sick and tired of the absolute willingness to want to shut everything down with literally ZERO regard for the fallout. It’s mind-blowing.
I work in a professional field that tends to be somewhat resistant to this kind of disruption. I’m actually facing a very busy spring, but most of my clients are canceling in-person meetings in favor of web conference calls.
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