SPOTLIGHT ON TINY BUSINESSES In our current predicament, we’ve been forced the opportunity [if you will] of getting to know ourselves better. Where and how we stand in our labour economies is determined by numerous variables. The relationship between employers and workers have become for many, restrictive. At least pre-pandemic we had some sort of illusionary safety net holding the actions of ourselves and our employers accountable. Now the workforce has turned into a warzone. No one is secure when a literal worldwide epidemic rips through the hierarchal structures of our working society. Everyone is scared. Now is our collective fight or flight response. Some of the worst affected have been small businesses. I don’t have to remind you of the numerous store closures, not to mention the consistent jerking around; opening up when the case numbers are low and shutting up shop when they rise. Hit hard by wage cuts, workers are seeking other means of income outside their average shift work or 9-5. They are doing so through commodifying their hobbies. In conversation with tiny [for now] business owners and sisters, Hale and Ayla Yuyucuoglu, they tell me how they took their leisure activities and turned them into profitable side hustles.
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