Information

• Small businesses have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic as compared to larger businesses due to structural inequalities and subsequent neglect by the government. 

• We interviewed key players in the small business industry, from arts to health to food & dining to beauty, in order to amplify their voices and compared their experiences to larger businesses in the community.

• Through the interviews and our research, we have proven that the limited governmental assistance that took an unnecessary amount of time due to the stark polarization of our country only provided a temporary band-aid to an ever-worsening wound. 

• As clearly demonstrated by the "status today" section, the loans and temporary assistance given during the pandemic are not effective enough at providing the basic assistance needed to keep nyc small businesses alive. 

​

• As of an April 2020 current population survey: (Fairlie 2020)

  • The number of active businesses owners dropped by 3.3 million (or 22%)​ from feb - apr. 2020

  • African American business experienced a 41% drop in business activity 

  • Latinx business owner activity dropped by 32%

  • Asian business owner activity dropped by 26% 

  • Immigrant businesses experienced a 36% drop in business activity

  • Women-owned businesses experienced a 25% drop in business activity

​

• As of another 2020 study (Humphries, Neilson, Ulyssea 2020)

  • by the time the CARES act was passed:​

    • 60% of small businesses had already laid off at least one worker​

  • Business owners' expectations about the future were justifiably very negative

    • 37% of respondents that answered in the first week did not expect to recover within the next two years​

    • as of most recent polling, this grew to 46% of respondents

  • The smallest small businesses had the least information and knowledge about government programs 

    • this revealing that many small businesses likely missed out on initial PPP funds ​

• General trends in our research have demonstrated that while federal and state relief packages had good intentions, they were burdened with many roadblocks that made the process of attaining aid difficult. While the data speaks for itself, interviews with small and large businesses alike within the NYC community demonstrate the real-life impacts of roadblocks in the legislative and financial processes of the country. 

• From restaurants like Carnegie Diner unable to receive adequate loans to stay afloat in an industry left high and dry, to small arts organizations having to navigate a highly complicated Shuttered Venues Loan application in competition with fellow members of the arts community, to small beauty companies having to shut their doors after just barely surviving a devastating year, it's clear that small businesses were disproportionately impacted by the pandemic as evidenced by the many legislative hoops that had to be jumped through to obtain even the most basic support, which often wasn't enough. These loans and grants are their only chance of survival, unlike large businesses that can depend on an elaborate corporate structure to stay afloat. 

• Each small business industry has had its own hurdles, from dealing with the limited funding of the Restaurant Revitalization Funding Program to the technological hurdles of the Shuttered Venues Grant, but their collective struggles and successes bind them together, leading to a stronger small business community post-pandemic.

• The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated disparities between large and small businesses alike, but it has more so deepened the importance of community.