Hundreds of thousands of businesses have closed permanently due to COVID. We have seen the loss of retailers, bookstores, antique stores, restaurants, fitness centers, health clubs, private schools, theaters, gyms, and many other independent businesses lost forever.
The list of business survivors includes mostly the biggest corporate chains with the wherewithal to withstand temporary shutdown or slowdown, while others were deemed essential and have thrived exponentially due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Small Independent Businesses
The smaller independent businesses are those hardest hit by the pandemic. These businesses are run by individuals with modest means who have taken the step to get a piece of the American dream, to be your own boss, do what you love, and let the world support remunerate you accordingly.
Unable to finance their businesses while waiting in hibernation for the pandemic restrictions to be lifted, forced these people to abandon their businesses forever. In one fell swoop their American dreams were smashed once and for all.
How many small businesses have closed due to COVID?
This is such a tragedy. Most of these businesses supported the everyday lives of entire families, who could have not seen this coming. Most of these businesses survived marginally, paying the bills, and taking care of the family on the difference. Instantly, all financial support stopped, and some owners were able to walk away with little more loss than their wounded pride, while others were disgraced, headed to bankruptcy courts, and feeling as though they let their families down.
No Unemployment
Unlike Americans who were sent home with no job due to the pandemic, the independent business owners who lost their businesses will not be entitled to unemployment, though family members who were employed by the business, would qualify for unemployment compensation.
Huge Fines, Restraining Orders, Jail Time
A few businesses have tried to survive and remained open to operate their business in order to survive as their business was the only method of supporting their family. Any of these businesses were fined hundreds of thousands of dollars and forcibly shut down and some of them went to jail.
One such restaurant near me, Spiffy’s, did dare to make a stand and was fined and restrained in court, and there are others everywhere all around the country. Businesses being court-ordered to shut down or else.
If my business was the only way I could feed my children, and I was ordered to shut it down, if I’d put all my life savings into this business and I had nothing else to fall back on, I might do the same. I can’t imagine what someone in that situation might do.
New Business Startups
On the other hand, while businesses are crashing and burning all around us in the wake of the pandemic, more new business startups have been launched than ever before in U.S. History.
People who have lost their jobs, are pulling themselves up by their own bootstraps and are starting their own businesses (ones that would be authorized to function during the pandemic lockdown) to better take care of their families.
I know a lot of these millions of new businesses that were launched during the pandemic, some of them were likely former independent businesses that were forced to close their doors forever. I know that is what I would do.