The following report is from ZeroHedge:
Despite trillions in Fed “stimulus” and endless government handouts, John Stanford, co-executive director of the Small Business Roundtable, told CNBC this week that “it continues to be a very painful time for small businesses.”
We have to remember, PPP was a bridge program. It was meant to keep people on the payroll, it wasn’t meant necessarily to keep businesses open.
John Stanford
In what will likely come as a surprise to many, amid political pressure to reopen nationwide – since lockdowns have been shown to be utterly useless – 22% of U.S. small businesses were closed in February, up significantly from October’s 14%, and back near May’s pandemic peak when 23% of small and medium-size businesses closed (just 1 percentage point higher than the current closure rate).
The report, from Facebook and the Small Business Roundtable, found that different areas of the country were experiencing varying degrees of difficulty.
Some states, like Maine, Idaho and Colorado, were seeing 9%-10% closures, while others like New York, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts were seeing at least 30% closed.
While larger companies with larger capital reserve may be doing OK, small businesses can’t just take the risk to stay open, and I think we’re seeing that play out with these high numbers.
John Stanford
He added, that despite the currency vaccine and Biden Bailous hope, 51% of the businesses surveyed said they were not planning to rehire former employees within the next six months.
Small business leaders expressed their renewed sense of desperation in the survey:
After 26 years as an owner of this business, very close to total collapse.
The pandemic not only shut my doors, but it created massive competition should I even consider returning to operations.
Breakdown in family structure and friendships. Feelings of financial hopelessness and simple bills causing stress.
And judging from consumers’ responses, things don’t look ready to improve anytime soon:
As much as I would love to support small businesses, I need to be more careful of how I spend money at the time.
I do prefer to shop at small businesses, but during the current situation that is hard. Many do not have websites online.
Bigger businesses tend to be more convenient for online ordering and cheaper.
It would seem SBR’s Stanford knows this too:
PPP and others really helped get us through a shutdown of a year’s economy, but I think we’ve got a tough road ahead.
AUTHOR COMMENTARY
The rich man’s wealth is his strong city: the destruction of the poor is their poverty.
Proverbs 10:15
I am mentioning this report because, to be acerbic here, there are willingly ignorant and unenlightened halfwits that have convinced themselves that the economy is booming and is greatly improving, and Americans are going back to work. If you believe that, you must also believe in the Easter Bunny, Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, Cupid, The Sandman, Tinker Bell, and other mythological creatures and beings.
I will keep saying it and reporting on it until the cows come home: the world economies are in freefall: and we have not seen the worst. It will go thermal nuclear in the not too distant future. While the bigs got bigger, the littler guy got pinched. This should further reiterate why you need to be preparing yourself and doing what you can to embrace the fallout of a soon to collapse economy.
Local Indiana Small Businesses Say Lockdowns Have Crushed Them. Predict Roaring Demand
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