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WBOC
Women-owned businesses stand up to COVID-19 By Alyssa Dearborn
Donna Glassberg
Nicole Samolis
t is not a secret that the COVID-19 has affected the Central New York economy. Businesses are now faced with challenges that owners have never experienced before and are navigating an uncharted future. But local business owners are not alone in the pandemic. Even during unprecedented times, organizations like the Women Business Opportunities Connection continue to work hard, promote local businesses, and help its diverse array of members. The organization continued to host events online and safely distanced and have even accepted new members. Businesswomen Donna Glassberg of Orange Housing, Dr. Sarah F. Spiegelhoff, Ph.D, LMHC, NCC, Sheila Ohstrom of Senior Home Care Solutions, and Nicole Samolis of SKY Armory, Epicuse, and The Events Company face different challenges within their own services, but—as part of the WBOC—they have been able to face those challenges together. “With the shelter in place order on March 13th, we lost so many clients that we normally work with in two weeks.” Ohstrom said when asked about how the pandemic affected her business, “Many of our clients we take care of while their families are at work were now home and or furloughed and could be there for their parents in place of us. They were also concerned about paying for the services if things got worse.” “The hospitality industry is one of the hardest hit during the pandemic.” Samolis added, “We’ve had to be nimble in working with information at hand and keep our clients informed and keeping their business on the books rather than losing it outright. Epicuse on the other hand has been our silver lining as it was deemed an essential business and we’ve been a food resource to not only the downtown residents but to people in the ‘burbs who want to avoid the big grocery stores.” “COVID-19 has left us with many unknowns, which has created symptoms of anxiety and depression for many New Yorkers,”
Dr. Spiegelhoff said. “Consequently, I’ve continued to work with existing and new clients, providing counseling and wellness services. The difference has been that I transitioned all of my clients to telehealth and only slowly began seeing a minimal number of clients in person.” As the pandemic began to affect business in Central New York, business owners had to make proper changes to ensure that their businesses could survive and continue serving the community. In many cases, technology became a saving grace. “It’s much harder to show properties in person to renters and buyers.” Glassberg said, “For this reason pictures matter more than ever. So I did some work on the way the pictures get uploaded to my site. I also invested in a 360-degree camera to see if that helps renters view the properties.” “Fortunately I have been offering HIPPA compliant telehealth services since 2019,” Dr. Spiegelhoff explained. “So I was familiar with the technology. Most of my clients have appreciated telehealth as it creates a barrier of safety. Since returning to my office, I have created several changes to ensure the health and safety of my clients. These changes include air purifiers with HEPA filters and UV-C lights, [and] hand sanitizer stations.” “We were never able to stop doing business. Our employees were never able to shelter in place.” Ohstrom added, “We work with the most vulnerable population and it’s very unsettling. We lost all of our dementia training that we provide to facilities all across New York State as it was very hands on. So we have reworked the training for a virtual world and will start to ramp up in August for that.” Other businesses did not have the ability to use technology to provide their services. Some businesses had to make the most of what their business already had and could provide. Samolis’s business—along with others in the hospitality industry— is one of those businesses.
I
August 2020
Recovery Edition
