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“There’s not really any work left to do”

Aug 20, 2020
A bartender’s diary before the bar he works in closes permanently.
Bartender Neil Cairns at work in Portland's Game Knight Lounge. Pandemic conditions have reduced Game Knight's customer traffic to a trickle.
(Thomas Patterson for Marketplace)

She turned a calming hobby into a business during quarantine

Aug 18, 2020
Tally Dilbert wanted to get her mind off the difficulty of being home all day. That’s when she rediscovered painting.
Paintings by Tally Dilbert.
Courtesy Tally Dilbert

One reason why Black-owned businesses have fared worse in the pandemic: weaker banking relationships

Aug 4, 2020
That leaves them restricted access to capital, according to a study by the New York Fed.
A beauty product booth at a Black-owned business expo in Florida. The number of Black business owners in the U.S. fell more than 40% between February and April, according to a New York Fed study.
Octavio Jones/Getty Images

CEOs call on Washington to help small businesses

Aug 4, 2020
Over 100 current and former corporate leaders sign a letter urging Congress to provide more relief to a huge sector that includes many of their suppliers and customers.
A shuttered small business in Brooklyn. Large corporations want small businesses to be kept afloat because the two sectors are interdependent.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Nail salon industry faces COVID-19 challenges as economies reopen

Jul 29, 2020
The owners, who employ many Asian immigrant workers, face mounting costs and fewer customers as they try to keep their doors open.
Employees at Mod Nail Lounge in Dallas use face masks, gloves and table shields when working with customers.
Courtesy Mod Nail Lounge

Expanded unemployment benefits help small businesses, too

Jul 27, 2020
They have been a lifeline for laid-off workers. They also boost demand and enable businesses to focus on staying afloat.
A hostess at a Miami restaurant waits for customers behind a partition. The expanded unemployment benefits helped small businesses make decisions early in the pandemic.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

How will minority-owned businesses fare in CARES 4.0?

Jul 23, 2020
In a Thursday hearing, the Senate was told how Black business owners faced hurdles accessing Paycheck Protection Program funding.
Black business owners had a particularly rough time getting access to Paycheck Protection Program funds at first, says Ronald Busby, president of U.S. Black Chambers.
Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images

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Chambers of commerce grapple with pandemic's burdens on local businesses

Jul 23, 2020
Chambers must navigate a new landscape that includes shutdowns, PPP applications and changing promotional strategies.
COVID-19 has altered the landscape for local chambers of commerce, who function to promote local businesses.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Becoming a small business owner during a pandemic

Jul 15, 2020
Erin Gomes, a new business owner in the Bay Area, faces unexpected challenges due to COVID-19.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

How the pandemic is creating a “low-touch” economy

Jul 10, 2020
Social distancing guidelines and nervous customers are pushing business to change how they operate. Some of the changes may be permanent.
The entry area of the Akwaaba D.C. bed and breakfast. Usually the inn would be booked solid this time of year, but few customers are visiting during the pandemic.
Kimberly Adams/Marketplace