They sold 60% of normal business in April and are on track to make this month 50% of what they made last May, thanks in large part to Jersey-themed face masks. Paul Miller and Tina Bologna, who co-own Just Jersey in Morristown, said they ramped up the store's web presence before the pandemic hit and online orders have been a lifesaver. Call a business and the staff will help you shop virtually. Mendham's Windswept Boutique wants to offer personal shopping. Select an outfit and buy it online and they will bring it out to you when you arrive. Open for Business: Cerbo's Greenhouses has survived two world wars, a depression, two pandemicsĪ sunny walk down Main Street has become e-commerce followed by a short drive and staggered pickup times. Rebuilding America: Morristown's Downtown shops face new challenges, but are eager to reopen Instead of strolling from a restaurant to a nearby ice cream store or chocolate shop, she places an order online and then dons a mask while finding a parking space so she can pick up her takeout. However, pandemic shopping is done differently. Hunscher lives outside of Chester and makes it a point to patronize the shops and restaurants in its quaint, walkable downtown. In the interest of safety, Reddin Petro will use only half of the 17 chairs in her salon when she reopens. Still, business owners are looking to reopen in any capacity just to stop bleeding cash. The majority of respondents fell into two camps: 29% said 50% to 74% of customers were needed, and 36% said 75% to 99% were necessary, with the majority saying that it would take more than a year for business to get back to pre-COVID-19 levels. The New Jersey Business & Industry Association asked its members to estimate the percentage of customers needed in order to "break even in a given month." Hunscher hears this a lot during video calls with business owners across the county. "While some businesses have received a PPP, the problem is that the PPP is only eight weeks, and we are coming to the end of the cash flow." The concern is that most businesses only have about a month or so in them before they have to shut the doors, and we are past that," said Morris County Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Meghan Hunscher. “It’s clear the governor wants to open New Jersey safely, and we clearly agree, but at the same time many small businesses are hurting.
Reddin Petro isn't the only one waiting with bated breath to see who will get Gov. Phil Murphy's next green light to open.
I don’t know how long it will take me to recover,” she said. Salons are not allowed to open yet, but when they are she will walk back into a business saddled with more debt than the day she bought it 15 years ago. Local: Denville is fixing fields, prepping roads around town during coronavirus downtime In my business, that would cost me thousands of dollars for eight weeks.”Ĭoronavirus: Boonton's downtown businesses get a financial boost from relief fund The truth is you have to pay your FICA taxes, and that is not forgivable. “Everyone thinks you have everyone back on payroll and the debt is forgiven. It is sitting in the bank and I am going to return it,” she said. Meanwhile the federal loan she received as part of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) is sitting untouched because the strings attached are too problematic. The timing of the governor's stay-at-home order in March was especially bad, as the salon missed its busy season with Easter, proms and the start of the wedding season, all of which would have been big earners.
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