Businesses find ways to stay relevant and make money during stay-at-home orders

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Instructors at Lighthouse Yoga held a practice session over Zoom before rolling out the virtual classes to customers.

"How is it going for you?," I asked each owner, referring to their storefronts being closed while the need to generate money still a real need. Having to be closed at a time when people are both being told to stay home, and some really valid anxiety is keeping them home, is a reality businesses never even considered before the pandemic came to DC.

This is a two-part series looking at the ways local businesses and restaurants are working to stay financially afloat while also supporting community needs. Part one looked at restaurants.

This is where creativity and desperation meet, as businesses have had to find new ways to stay relevant in the lives of their customers, and encourage customers to keep spending money. Selling online has become the primary way businesses are reaching customers, going on to video conferencing platforms, or only allowing a few people inside the store at a time.

"We closed our doors on March 14th and immediately transitioned to a 'virtual yoga studio,'“ said Lighthouse Yoga Center owner Julie Eisenberg. “We had no idea what we were doing, but we knew that offering yoga and healing at this time was critically important.”

Unsure of how the transition would go, Eisenberg started using Zoom to conduct yoga classes. It worked. 

"The community support has been overwhelming. We’ve had people sign up for the most expensive passes available just to support us, and now we’re starting to run some by-donation community events to benefit the teachers who most need it," Eisenberg said. 

"Our goal is to stay afloat and continue to pay our teachers and staff through the online memberships. We’re still responsible for our full rent plus utilities and other monthly bills, so our costs are relatively high. In addition, we have several teachers whose families have lost all their income and we’re trying to provide some extra support for them."

Supporting the financial needs of staff — and paying the fixed costs that haven't gone away — is driving all businesses to either come up with something creative, or to close, apply for a Small Business Grant and hope it covers their bills until the country opens up again while getting their employees on unemployment as soon as they can.

The stress of staying home, losing income or the fears of getting sick are all real. Heidi Vanderwerff, one of the owners of the Kennedy Counseling Collective, said they've transitioned to online-only, "virtual therapy" to help people find ways of dealing with those stresses and fears.

"In many ways, we continue to do what we have always done well — only now exclusively online," said Vanderwerff. "We offer support to clients processing various life experiences, and right now, we also support clients with fears of getting sick, work-life balance, guilt about privilege in this situation, and isolation causing loneliness."

Now, because of the increase of stress in the community, Vanderwerff said they've had to be creative to find ways to reach people. "We now offer free 15-minute video consults so people can try it before committing," she said. "We added 30-minute appointments as well as post-bedtime parent support sessions. It’s a delicate balance between maintaining business and being sensitive to the changing economy. We are seeing our numbers drop some, but also know that people need the support right now." 

There's still physical inventory that needs to be sold — or could be sold — if people are willing to do curbside pickups or get no-contact deliveries. 

"We have some brand new super-cushiony mats for sale for home practice and our inventory of studio swag like water bottles, mugs and t-shirts that we're offering customers – everything can be delivered or a porch pick-up can be organized," said Eisenberg. "So to keep active,  the best way to support would be to sign up for a Virtual Membership, virtual Kids’ Yoga Membership, our upcoming Prenatal Yoga series, or even take some of our retail inventory off our hands.”

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For many businesses… waiting is all they can do. Wait and hope to get through the crisis, that DC and Federal support helps them financially get by. For now, they wait.

A few months before the pandemic began, Loyalty Bookstore on Upshur Street transitioned from having its own storefront to working out of Willow. While that was a difficult change on its own, owner Hannah Oliver Depp said customers have followed them online and are ordering books.

Keeping momentum, and keeping some type of revenue coming in, means customers need to start going out to their way to support their favorite businesses. "We are doing tons of online orders via our website," Depp said. "The best thing people can do is get either one of our bundles of personalized book and gift picks, a gift card, or a membership. We're also working on virtual programming and book clubs."

While both of Loyalty's storefronts (Petworth and Silver Spring) are closed, Depp said they continue to ship across the US, and sell ebooks and audiobooks on their website (they also have an affiliate page with Bookshop.org).  

Julie Wineinger has had some success with her Lulabelle's Sweet Shop on Upshur Street offering groceries and ice cream for sale. As for her other business on the block, Willow, she said it's more difficult. "Fortunately my landlord realizes and understands that we are sort of in this together. He has been incredibly supportive and I hope that we can both come out of this ok. Eventually, I will have to figure something out but I have a little bit of time. Because it isn't an essential business, there are less options," she said.

"LEDC and District Bridges, as well as the DC SBA, have been very available and helpful to try and determine the resources for us," Depp said, "but I think small business owners' hopes are low of actually SEEING this cash in time to make a difference. Rent, payroll, and vendors bills are coming due while we wait to hear anything, let alone see any money. For most cash-in, cash-out businesses, this means they either get into debt (which not all of us can do) or shut down entirely. For us to reopen and then stay open when this passes, they need to move faster or declare an abatement on those bills until they are ready to distribute funds. If only there was a federal government who could help with these national crisis. Alas."

Vanderwerff said that with more than 80% of their clients living within a mile of their office, they have always relied on the neighborhood for the health of their business, but in the short term, they are taking advantage of federal and local government support. "Our clients are critical to our long-term sustainability," she said.

These business owners have to navigate the same issues as everyone else while keeping their business afloat — balancing family and work. “Like many people, I have young kids at home that are not in school,” said Wineinger. “I am and pretty much always have been a one woman show (plus some really great staff) so I am limited in my capacity. My husband and I are navigating taking care of the kids and trying to both work.”

Ed Note: As you order take-out from your favorite restaurant, think about how you might support the other local businesses in the area — virtually. If nothing else, gift certificates are a great way of getting money into the hands of business owners while getting something valuable for yourself.

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