Adapting and Expanding

It's about as hard to find a shred of positivity these days as it is to find a small business not hurting from the COVID-19 pandemic. So instead of perpetuating negative vibes, we'd like to highlight small businesses adapting to and even expanding during the new normal that is COVID-19. 

From selling curbside pick-up, to online consultations, to retooling production lines for hand sanitizer, small businesses rock. We'd like to highlight a few examples below.

Adapting:

- "accuRx have developed a video consultation service (in the space of a weekend!) and made it free for all frontline NHS staff. Patients don’t need to download anything and doctors don’t need fancy webcams or anything to use it. The statistics and feedback are incredible."

- "BrewDog has transformed its distillery in a bid to help with the shortage of hand sanitisers, by creating a new one for giveaways to those in need."

- "3D-printing companies like Massachusetts-based Markforged and Formlabs are both making personal protective equipment like face shields, as well as nasal swabs to use for COVID-19 testing."

- "Brownsboro Hardware & Paint, with locations in Louisville and Prospect, Ky., has long offered free delivery of its grills, within certain areas. While hardware stores are considered essential in Kentucky and remain open, Brownsboro added curbside pickup, as well as delivery of a wider range of items. That allows customers who prefer not to come within the store to still access the inventory,” says owner Jim Lehrer. “We want to keep people safe and as comfortable as possible.”"

" 1Rebel, London-based fitness club has announced that it is willing to offer its gym spaces to the NHS for extra beds during the coronavirus pandemic. 1Rebel co-founder James Balfour has said that he believes the gyms have space for up to 400 beds."

Expanding:

- "“We didn’t see it coming,” said Ryan Lupberger, the co-founder of Cleancult, a venture-backed startup that manufactures natural cleaning products in zero waste packaging. “People are just not finding cleaning products in stores,” said Lupberger in New York City, where half of the 15-person team is working remotely, the other half is in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Cleancult’s Amazon sales have increased eight times over in the past several weeks, according to Lupberger, tripled in retail stores and doubled on Cleancult’s website."

- "Tushy saw its bidet sales skyrocket when consumers began to have a collective melt down about toilet paper scarcity. Founded by Miki Agrawal, Tushy makes portable, self-installable bidets, allowing users to clean themselves with water rather than toilet paper. Bidets are popular in many countries, but have yet to catch on in the U.S."

- "When Ashley Tyrner, the founder of Farmbox Direct, a subscription service that delivers boxes of fresh produce, woke up on March 14, she thought there was some type of bug in her computer system. “There’s no way we could have taken that many orders overnight,” recalled Tyrner recently, “but we did. We are doubling the company every 24 hours.”"

- "Scough, a mash up of “scarf” and “cough,” is a Brooklyn-based company that makes stylish wrap around scarves and bandanas in funky patterns with attached hidden masks. The immunosuppressant community has typically purchased Scough masks, according to founder Andrew Kessler, as well as airplane travelers, motorcycle and bike riders. In early March masks were in such high demand that Scough’s entire stock sold out."

In addition to these small pockets of light, we've tried to contribute to the efforts through our writing and new partnership platform. Specifically, we've written extensively on the implications of the new CARES act, created a small business pandemic toolbox, and opened up a new partnership platform for businesses that are struggling during this outbreak and would like to explore options around a long-term partnership. We will continue to bring value to the small business community in the coming weeks and hope that you will reach out for specific requests on how we can continue to assist you in these times. 

Viral prohibition, eminent domain, and the path ahead (Permanent Equity)
+ "As new information is released daily, we’re trying to digest and update our priors. In an attempt to make sense of what we’re experiencing, two analogies have been helpful to me: Prohibition and Eminent Domain."

Small business pandemic response toolbox (Permanent Equity)
+ We’re using this page to collect tools and resources to help SMB owners/operators navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, the resulting economic conditions, and the government’s response.

What the CARES act modifies in FFCRA (Permanent Equity)
+ This is our legal team's interpretation of how the CARES act modifies the FFCRA. 

What the CARES act expansion of unemployement insurance (RWACA) means for small business (Permanent Equity)
+ This is our legal team's interpretation of the RWACA and what it means for small businesses.

What the CARES act paycheck protection program means for small business (Permanent Equity)
+ This is our legal team's interpretation of the paycheck protection program's implications for small business. 

The economics of a pandemic: the case of COVID-19 (London Business School)
+ A long, detailed look at all things COVID-19: the science, the policies, and the economics of a pandemic. 

The anatomy of the $2 trillion COVID-19 stimulus bill (Visual Capitalist)
+ This is a striking visual of how the new COVID-19 stimulus bill breaks down from small business to employees to corporations. 

Chinese mask entrepreneur reaps $1.9bn coronavirus bonanza (Financial Times)
+ "With an estimated market share of 40 percent for the speciality fabrics used in masks in China, shares in Shenzhen-listed Dawn Polymer soared by 417 per cent in the six weeks following January 20, when the Chinese nation was alerted to the spread of the virus. The value of Mr Yu and his wife Han Limei’s holdings in the company they control surged by more than Rmb13.5bn ($1.9bn) by March 9 to about Rmb16.8bn, based on the most recent disclosures."

Tom Colicchio Spent 19 Years Building a Restaurant Empire. Coronavirus Gutted It in a Month. (Marker Media)
+ "Now New York is facing another unthinkable catastrophe — this time, along with the entire world — and the restaurant industry is threatened as never before. Last week, Danny Meyer, Colicchio’s one-time partner, shut down all 19 of his storied establishments, laying off 2,000 people — some 80% of his workforce. Thomas Keller furloughed 1,200. And Colicchio has done the same, laying off all but a few of his 300 employees."

Adapting Episode 1: Canlis Restaurant (Acquired)
+ "Mark Canlis joins us to discuss how the world-renowned Canlis restaurant in Seattle is adapting by simultaneously closing their 70 year old dining room service, and launching three brand new, no-contact concept restaurants in just one week to keep their staff employed and the city fed."

COVID-19: $800+ million to support small businesses and crisis response (Google Blog)
+ "$340 million in Google Ads credits available to all SMBs with active accounts over the past year. Credit notifications will appear in their Google Ads accounts and can be used at any point until the end of 2020 across our advertising platforms. We hope it will help to alleviate some of the cost of staying in touch with their customers."

Don't just throw together a webinar — the virtual events crash course you need (First Round Review)
+ "See what resonates with your audience and if it works, keep doing it. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes right now with virtual events — the bar isn’t very high."

The end-of-the-world business is booming (The Hustle)
+ "In recent weeks, doomsday businesses have been flooded with phone calls, emails, and bulk orders — not from survivalists, but soccer moms, professors, and orthodontists. There is suddenly a backorder on everything from 20-pound rations of dehydrated peaches to multimillion-dollar private bunkers. For the moment, doomsday prepping has gone mainstream."

We'd love your help.

If you stumble across something great, send it to weekly@permanentequity.com.

If you know an owner, operator, or someone who works with SMB's, please give us the highest compliment and send them our way. You can find previous The Weekly issues here.