Pandemic takes toll, say small businesses
You’ve heard it before from the governor and mayor to the local chamber of commerce: “shop local.”
Those two words have never been more important than now as local businesses strive to survive in a pandemic that has caused revenue to decline and business owners to question the future of their business endeavors.
David Maddox is the owner of Fathers & Sons Clothier in Jefferson Square, which is known for its men’s formal wear and apparel. When covid-19 first made its debut in Pine Bluff, Maddox thought it would be a temporary inconvenience. With just a few weeks before prom, Maddox had appointments booked and rentals ready to go. And with wedding season just around the corner, he was already scheduling appointments for fittings.
“We had just gotten our new spring 2020 catalog in and our displays and we were getting everything set for prom season, and then the governor came out and said the school was going to be canceled the week before spring break,” said Maddox. “I was like, oh, OK, it’s no big deal, the kids will be back in school the week after spring break. But then when we got the news that school was going to be canceled the rest of the year, of course; I was like wow, right in the middle of my prom season.”
Another businessperson affected by the school closures
because of covid-19 was Ester Doolittle Jr., operator and owner of D & S Produce located in the 2000 block of North University Drive. A fresh produce retailer, Doolittle said his business took a major hit due to covid-19.
“I lost all of my customers,” said Doolittle. “I sell to the school system and that cut my business completely out.”
With a staff of up to fifteen employees, Doolittle said he had to let them all go and now he is just trying to survive day to day.
Maddox, on the other hand, has had covid-19 work in his favor in an unfortunate way.
“The suit business has been doing really well,” said Maddox. “Unfortunately, with covid-19, we’ve experienced a lot of deaths in the community as well as the United States and we’re here to provide a service for people that may have lost a loved one due to covid with the suits, shirts, and ties.”
Business is also picking back up for wedding celebrations, as those who had spring weddings postponed them to a later date.
“There was a shift since all of my weddings were canceled and all of my spring weddings got pushed to fall,” said Maddox. “Now that we are in the midst of fall season, a lot of weddings that were scheduled in the spring, we’re doing them now.”
The struggle through the pandemic, prior to this point, was tough for Maddox who had to lay off all of his employees and refund all of his customers who had already paid in advance.
“Once we got the news that school and everything was going to be canceled
for the rest of the year a lot of customers came in that had already booked tuxedos for prom. Of course, we had to give them refunds because you know it’s a situation that was out of our control and their control,” said Maddox. “With us, we’re big on customer service and it was just one of those things that we had to deal with.”
Fathers & Sons Clothier was also an access point for UPS, and Maddox continued to provide that service when Gov. Asa Hutchinson mandated retail businesses shut down back in the spring. Providing curbside pickup and drop off, Maddox continued to operate in that manner until he was able to reopen his business a few weeks later.
He also took advantage of the federal assistance offered by the government to keep his business afloat and bring his employees back to work using the Payroll Protection Plan.
Doolittle did the same, taking advantage of the funds offered by the state, but he says that wasn’t sufficient to rehire his staff due to the uncertainty of his business.
“Day-to-day, I’m just trying to figure out what to do,” he said. “There’s no certain plan. I’m just trying to survive.”
Maddox said the pandemic has forced him to rethink how he does business, but he said his consistency of providing the very best customer service throughout the pandemic is what has kept him in survival mode.
Ulanda Arnett, the Pine Bluff Chamber of Commerce’s regional conference director, said during this time, especially, the Chamber of Commerce has an important role when it comes to local businesses.
“My role is extremely important during this time because we are working to provide relevant business development resources, marketing, and networking opportunities to assistant business with increasing sales and customers,” said Arnett. “Supporting local businesses helps improve the overall quality of life in our area, helps provide new job opportunities, and helps diversify the products and services in our region.”
Doolittle said because his business focuses on the fresh vegetables and other flea market-type items, until the economy in those markets increases, his hope for the future is uncertain.
Maddox launched a t-shirt campaign during the summer that focused on the importance of supporting your local mom and pop shops. Learning from experience, he wanted to get the word out in the community that local businesses were in trouble and needed community support.
“Very few people realize how important it is to shop local because local small businesses pay local taxes for fire, police, sheriff,” said Maddox. All of the things within the community as far as the city, we collect those local taxes.”
“During this pandemic, people need to know how important it is to support your local mom and pop shop, “said Maddox. “This pandemic has affected a lot of small businesses who are hurting right now.”