General Motors has volunteered to use its production line and workers to make respirators. So has Ford and Tesla. ZF, a German industrial conglomerate, needed to source masks for its employees in Chinese factories. The team at ZF reverse engineered the process and started making masks for its own people. The company is now producing 100,000+/daily and giving many away to local communities. Christian Dior stopped making perfumes and started making hand sanitizer. Pernod, famous for their champagne, also switched production to sanitizer in favor of spirits. Closer to home, 3 Daughters Brewing (an SBF Client) is using their machinery and ingenuity to make their own hand sanitizer that they are giving away for free.
At SBF, we cannot produce respirators, masks, or sanitizer but we can do what we do best, help small businesses work through problems and find solutions. Our team is up and running full speed and here to help you find the resources you need to emerge from this pandemic as strong as you were before it.
Some tips for small businesses coping with the COVID-19 crisis
Small businesses across the country are adapting to changing government mandates, coping with sharply reduced consumer demand, and working to keep their employees and customers safe as the COVID-19 crisis intensifies.
To help our small business clients meet the challenges they are facing, we‘ve compiled a list of possible strategies, with related resources available to you.
- Floridadisaster.biz exists to help Florida businesses prepare, respond and recover from disasters such as COVID-19. This is an effort by the state to partner with local authorities to ensure that every county rebuilds stronger than before. To claim damage to your business, complete a survey here.
- Check with your bank or credit card company on measures they are taking to help business clients during this difficult time. Some banks increasing debit and credit limits, deferring loan payments, and waiving overdraft fees for qualified business customers.
- Request a credit limit increase. Your bank may be open to an increase for your business to help it get past these current challenges.
- Ask your landlord if you can defer a rent payment. Tricera Capital has offered to defer April rent payments for its retail tenants around Florida, as an example of what some companies are doing.
- Consider a bridge loan. The state of Florida has activated the Florida Small Business Emergency Bridge Loan Program, which allows small businesses to apply for short-term loans of up to $50,000 (or $100,000 in special cases).
- Consider a federal loan. Small business owners in certain states (including Florida) can apply for a low-interest loan of up to $2 million to help mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on their businesses.
- Look into a grant. Facebook announced that it will be offering cash grants and advertising credits for up to 30,000 small businesses all over the world. The application isn’t available yet, but Facebook plans to offer $100 million for the program when it is up and running.
- Try hosting online events, use alternative methods to stay in touch with your customer base, and respond quickly to inquiries and customer service requests.
- Be generous. If your business is in a position to wait on a payment from a client, defer an invoice, or waive a fee. Consider acting in the interest of your clients or customers, who may be suffering financial losses during this time.
The federal government is also considering a number of actions that might help small businesses, including making cash payments to individuals, delaying the tax deadline, and covering the cost of paid sick leave for employees. We are keeping up with the news about these possible steps and will keep you posted as more information becomes available.
Owning a small business is hard enough in normal economic times, much less in these unprecedented times. If SBF can be of help to your business, don’t hesitate to contact us at (727) 888-9200 or info@sbfcpa.com.