WEDNESDAY April 1, 2020
BEAT
jaxdailyrecord.com • 35 cents
the virus
support your lo
LV1 88 34
cal er
g ou Br
ht
businesses!
to
yo u
by Dai ly
d& cor nd Re
r se Ob
v
Daily Record JACKSONVILLE
CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC: YOUR INSIGHT
Record a
THE MATHIS REPORT
SmartBox Daily Record sales suffer with workers Daily Record sent home JACKSONVILLE
JACKSONVILLE
KAREN BRUNE MATHIS EDITOR
Daily’s may open Downtown gas station
Daily Record JACKSONVILLE
Owner Brandon Stallings says the healthy snack box and vending business is making a third of what it usually does, but some companies are reaching out to feed their employees at home.
JEA is reviewing a utility service request for a 1.4-acre block at Bay and Broad streets.
BY KATIE GARWOOD STAFF WRITER
A chunk of Brandon Stallings’ SmartBox business relies on his customers’ employees being in their offices. In addition to snack box subscriptions, SmartBox installs vending machines and kiosks stocked with healthy, organic snacks in office buildings throughout the city. Stallings said while customers continue to order snack boxes, the SmartBox vending machines and GoMarket sales are down because many employees are working from home. “We’re probably only making a third of what we would usually make,” he said March 27. “It’s definitely impacted.” Stallings said his snack box subscriptions could help people, especially those working remotely or have children home from school. Some companies have reached out to him looking for ways to feed their employees at home. Others are finding unique ways to use the snack boxes. “I just saw an order come in yesterday, people are quarantining so someone sent a
File photo
SmartBox CEO Brandon Stallings sells healthy snacks to office workers via vending machines and a custom snack box delivery service.
KEEPING CLOSE – FROM A DISTANCE Since March 13, city event venues, stores, restaurants, malls, entertainment centers, churches and businesses shut down and laid off workers or sent them home to telecommute to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The Daily Record will report how local small business owners are dealing with the imposed social isolation.
JEA is reviewing a service availability request for First Coast Energy to develop a Daily’s gas station and convenience store Downtown. The March 25 request identifies the 1.4-acre block bounded by Bay, Broad, Forsyth and Jefferson streets. A former bank drive-thru at 60 N. Broad St. built in 1976 and a three-story building, a former nightclub, at 618 W. Forsyth St. built in 1914 are on the site. LoopNet.com states the nightclub structure is under contract. Civil engineer England-Thims & Miller asks JEA to review the availability of utilities for the site, which is owned by Mark L. Rosenberg. Rosenberg, a lawyer, referred questions to First Coast Energy. First Coast Energy representatives did not respond to three phone calls March 30 and 31. JEA is reviewing the availability of electric, water, sewer and reuse services. Jacksonville-based First Coast
SEE STALLINGS, PAGE 2
SEE MATHIS, PAGE 2
Venus Fashion making face masks Instead of swimsuits and women’s clothing, Jacksonville-based Venus Fashion is manufacturing protective face masks for health care workers. It will donate the masks to Jacksonville hospitals as well as St. Joseph’s Hospital in Paterson, New Jersey — the fourth-busiest hospital in the country. Several days into the effort, Venus has produced more than 1,000 masks. “We felt compelled to step up to support the selfless health care workers who are working around the clock for their communities during this challenging time,” said Pamela Kimball, Venus’s director of swim, intimates and sleepwear.
VOLUME 107, NO. 96 • ONE SECTION