Roundup #9: Closing Up Shop in the time of Coronavirus [104]

I’ve seen a variety of different responses to COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, in the service industry. Because of how contagious the virus is—and how long it takes for symptoms to show up while a person is contagious, the service industry, in a matter of days, has changed completely.

I wanted to understand the variety of responses I’ve seen from businesses. I’ve seen some address the virus as a passing hiccup, while others have already fired some of their staff anticipating slowing sales. So I called my friend, Trevor Gruehn, who is the owner of Bradbury’s Coffee in Madison, Wisconsin. As of today, March 17th, Bradbury’s is closed, but Trevor and his staff decided to shutter before there was a statewide mandate. I wanted to talk to Trevor because he was being proactive: he’s set up a virtual tip jar to offset the lack of tips his staff would receive, and he’s promised to pay his staff for the next two weeks, hoping that government relief comes sooner rather than later.

One of the other reasons I wanted to talk to Trevor is that he is my friend, and I wanted to push him. I wanted to ask him uncomfortable questions and figure out how other business owners can start to be more proactive with their response to coronavirus—and I wanted to push him on his responsibility. And personally, I also needed to talk to my friend, and assure him that I would support him the best way I knew how: by amplifying his voice, and potentially showing other business owners that there is a responsible way to act in this moment of uncertainty. 

BRADBURY'S TIP JAR: Venmo @bradburyscoffee