The pandemic may have broken many things, but it did not break the resolve of our people. We have been blown away by the countless stories of small business owners, artists, creatives and folks in every profession. The resilience and the ability to pivot to survive has been beyond inspiring and below we’ve shared stories of how folks have adapted their business models and ways of operating.

Jordyn Roberts

Covid definitely changed how I ran my business , but covid was actually the best year for my business financially. 2020 the year covid hit I scaled my business to 6-figures but I didn’t get comfortable in keeping my business model because even though I made the most I had ever made during a pandemic, I always try to be prepared for anything to change. Read more>>

Evelyn Armstrong

Covid has changed creative industries immensely over the past two years. Many if not all creative opportunities ceased to exist during the first wave of 2020. As a student attending a university designed around creative careers, this was discouraging to say the least. I was simultaneously being told I could make it in the world as an artist earning a livable wage with access to endless opportunities, all while observing the creative world around me become dormant. Read more>>

Bronson Ma

Honestly, it hasn’t to a large degree because our business has always be remote – our team and our clients. I think what COVID-19 has done is helped clients to feel more at ease working remotely, at least for those who traditionally work only with companies with a local presence. I believe at the end of the day, clients don’t really care how the work is done and where the business is located as long they can count on their service providers. Read more>>

Taryn Smith

At the beginning of Covid the togo sales for bar Queen were booming but not that everyone is going back to the restaurants and the clubs it has slowed down tremendously. Covid had another big spike and customers were not having gatherings either, but this summer 2022 everything has turned around and we are thriving. Read more>>

Melvin Nelson

When COVID- 19 came around it was game changing for the bakehouse. Business was growing crazy. Of course with ever boom you may evidentially slow down. This was where the real work came in for me being a small business owner. I had to really dig into my business and keep the momentum I built going. Between building my social media platforms more and changing packaging. The overall experience from the first message until you receive our product is something we constantly focus on.. Read more>>

Joshua Lona

Covid made me realize that for my business to truly thrive that it had to grow beyond just me. I learned this because I took on so many weddings in 2021 that I became overwhelmed. I did not know how many reschedules from 2020 and the first half of 2021 would pour into the Fall of 2021. We are still catching up on some wedding highlight edits from 2021 and I wish that I hired an editor ahead of time. Now we have an amazing team of editors and it’s been so rewarding to watch them grow! Read more>>

Courtney Richardson

Many businesses were unfortunate and experienced great loss during the pandemic; however, I was grateful to continue my meal prep services for a select number of clients which allowed me to broaden my scope of service and how and where I do business. In March 2020, I expanded my meal prep and consulting services beyond the Houston area and gained clients in the greater New Orleans and Baton Rouge areas. Read more>>

Allison Weeks.

I owned a thriving pet care company with 16 people on my team and over 600 clients spanning North County San Diego. When the shutdowns first began, I thought, “Ok, we can outlast this, no problem.” So I encouraged our dog walkers and pet sitters to use the down time to their benefit and enjoy the break! Many had been extremely busy over the prior holiday season, so some time to rest and recuperate would be welcome. Read more>>

Nicole Hicks

The Pandemic hit Small businesses hard, it honestly forced me to reshape my business model. At first I was shut down just like everyone else and that’s nice I felt comfortable enough to open back up, I realized that people were much more open to private dining at home since restaurants were still touch and go. Business actually started to boom! Read more>>

Hope Hughes

We officially started our little company in 2017 to create products we loved – books and art decks. Matt went from a full-time corporate job to contract work, which stressed our finances, so we decided to put all our creative energy into the business we created and grow our product line. Luckily, the metaphysical market grew faster than I anticipated, and we could sustain our profitability. Read more>>

Shanece Moss

Ironically, I started my business during the 1st covid shut down 2 years ago. The first stimulus check is what I used to purchase all of my startup ingredients, a shelf and a portable table. I already wanted to start my business but that it was gave me the funds to jump into it. In February I had covid which caused me to shut down my business for a month. Read more>>