Keep supporting the state’s small businesses
Small businesses are the backbone of the economy in Texas, accounting for 45 percent of jobs and employing more than 4.7 million people. The COVID-19 pandemic has rattled so many of these businesses like my own, which relies on regional events like the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. Due to the pandemic, business owners were forced to change and adapt their business models. As we move forward with fully reopening the economy, it’s crucial for Texans to continue to shop at small businesses, especially women-owned businesses.
In 2019, the estimated economic impact of RodeoHouston was $227 million. Canceling Houston’s annual event for a second consecutive year has saddled many of the more than 300 vendors with long-term hardship. These vendors, many of them small businesses, are at the center of a financial ripple effect that is stressing the employees and communities they support.
Now more than ever, small businesses need your commitment to navigate the post-COVID world. The pandemic has motivated small businesses like mine to reinvent our approaches to advertising to help others affected by COVID-19. If you buy from one of hundreds of vendors hurt by the RodeoHouston cancellation, you’ll be part of the comeback story.
According to a McKinsey survey, 58 percent of minority owned small businesses are “extremely” or “very” concerned about the viability of their business. More than 40 percent of them have added new services to support their communities and employees, compared with 27 percent of all respondents. A separate
study from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce shows women-owned businesses have also been hard hit, with the number that ranked the overall health of their business as “somewhat or very good” dropping 13 percent during the height of the pandemic. As a business owner who is both a minority and a woman, I’ve witnessed this firsthand.
In my home country of Mexico, the National Institute of Statistics and Geography reported the largest quarter-onquarter GDP retraction in its history, falling 17.3 percent in the second quarter of 2020. While the country has reopened
to tourism, unemployment is still high, and many lack basic access to health care.
At my business, Margarita Mercantile, each sale of our traditionally made clothes and handbags supports artisans in Mexico in multigenerational communities where making items by hand is a necessity. While I’m proud to share my cultural traditions with our customers, we are inspired by the new impact we are having on the places most hard-hit by the virus. Each sale that we’ve made over the last year directly allows our business to continue to employ artisans in Mexico, and financially support an orphanage in Oaxaca,
Mexico.
Facebook and Instagram have been lifelines, enabling my team to contact customers directly, inform them how the pandemic has impacted our business operations and share innovative adjustments we are making.
In Texas, many vendors have come together to create Facebook support groups like Texas Vendors & Organizers, which connects small business owners with in-person and virtual events so they can continue to make a living and support those they employ.
Since June, I’ve grown my online following by 121 percent, connected with customers throughout North America and Europe, and increased overall sales by 30 percent.
As we’re set to enter the second quarter and the vaccine rollout continues at a rapid pace, there’s hope on the horizon. We’re down, but we’re not out.
If you currently shop small — thank you. If not, I implore you to consider making yourself aware of businesses in the community outside of big-box retailers, following local stores on Facebook and Instagram for updates and discounts, or visiting your local chamber of commerce for small business shopping guides.
It’s critical that Texans try to spend at small businesses, where possible, to continue to support and build back the financial pillar of this community and diversify the region’s economy.