Small-business survival guide

SMALL-BUSINESS

survival guide

4 ROADRUNNER ENTREPRENEURS ADAPT TO STAY AFLOAT IN A TURBULENT ECONOMY.

It’s an understatement to say small businesses are an anchor of the U.S. economy.

In normal times, small businesses make up about 44% of the U.S. economy and about half of the workforce, even though 18% of those businesses nationally employ fewer than 20 workers. In Colorado, small businesses employ more than 1.1 million people.

But these aren’t normal times. As the COVID-19 pandemic wreaks havoc on local, state and national economies, many small businesses are in serious danger of going under. And the stakes couldn’t be higher.

“Small businesses have a huge impact — not only on the overall economy, but they’re where so many of our innovative and cutting-edge ideas come from,” said Lynn Hoffman, professor of management at Metropolitan State University of Denver.

“It’s going to be critical for businesses to be able to pivot quickly and meet the demand in this new normal, whatever that is,” he added. “Folks who are married to an idea or one way of doing things — they’re not going to survive.”

Fortunately, Roadrunners are educated to adapt. Here’s what four alumni-owned small businesses are doing to help keep the engine of our economy running even in the most challenging of times.

BY CORY PHARE

SMALL BUSINESSES

EMPLOY

ABOUT HALF

OF THE

U.S. WORKFORCE

I LOVE KICKBOXING

ENTREPRENEUR: Sean Moore CHANGE: ONLINE WORKOUTS

When Sean Moore purchased an I Love Kickboxing franchise March 1, the longtime entrepreneur had a plan.

“We’d developed a whole marketing campaign to get us to where we needed to get to become profitable,” said the 1999 MSU Denver marketing graduate. “But 15 days in, I had to shut the whole thing down.”

Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, Moore had to move quickly, switching to a virtual instruction environment. The operation now offers online workouts and instruction for patrons, with different tiers featuring equipment such as bags and gloves, one-on-one coaching and fitness challenges.

Shifting those deliverable product offerings has been critical for Moore, who missed the cutoff for the Small Business Administration and Paycheck Protection Program loans by two weeks with his March 1 purchase date of the business. Instead, he took out a personal loan. While he had to cut staff hours, he has been able to keep all six of his employees.

“Having a strong staff in place was so important,” Moore said. “They already had a process in place, which meant I could focus on the business side and keep things afloat.”

ALYSON MCCLARAN

ALYSON MCCLARAN

DENVER LEGAL MARKETING

ENTREPRENEUR: Meranda Vieyra

CHANGE: MOVING TO ONLINE OPERATIONS AND MARKET ANALYSIS

SMALL BUSINESSES

EMPLOY MORE THAN

1.1 MILLION PEOPLE

IN COLORADO Meranda Vieyra is answering a lot of questions right now.

“We’re a relationship-based industry — a lot of business happens over lunches or coffees that obviously aren’t happening,” said the founder of Denver Legal Marketing. “Folks are wondering, ‘Should we market right now, or does it come off as tone-deaf? What does business development look like?’”

The company, whose clients are small law firms and solo practitioners, was able to switch operations fully online essentially overnight, she said, and is relying on strategic maneuverability to provide more market analysis.

“My advice to (clients) is to plan for different scenarios — business as usual, continued quarantines and a potential recession — then look at how consumers respond,” Vieyra said.

“People will spend their money differently, including on legal services.”

The 2010 MSU Denver graduate in Chicana/o studies and criminal justice also teaches a marketing-of-legal-services class in the University’s College of Business that affords undergraduate students the ability to connect with judges, bar association professionals, practicing lawyers and others.

“I’m watching my market and looking ahead, just like I’m telling my clients,” she said. “It’s critical to have a game plan in place for every possible situation you may face.”

LONGMONT FLORIST

ENTREPRENEUR: Nate Golter CHANGE: DIGITAL SALES, DELIVERY AND LOCAL BANKING

PEAK VIEW BREWING

ENTREPRENEUR: Sean Peters CHANGE: ONLINE ORDERING, TO-GO ORDERS AND NEW PARTNERSHIPS

With full tanks and three beers shipped off to the upcoming World Beer Cup, Sean Peters and the recently opened Peak View Brewing in Greenwood Village were ramping up for the summer busy season. Then COVID-19 hit, and everything was upended as restaurants and bars were shuttered essentially overnight.

“That really shook us — we were scrambling to cut costs on our bills and operations,” said the 2017 MSU Denver business graduate. “We had to furlough our entire staff, and my business partner and I weren’t paying ourselves; even then, we were barely breaking even.”

To keep things going, Peters revamped their website to focus on their available to-go options of 25- and 32-ounce cans of flagship beers, including their Peanut Butter Porter and Strawberry Cheesecake. The brewery was also able to negotiate with its landlords and adjust business hours according to traffic fluctuations, and a PPP loan allowed them to bring back their For more than 50 years, business has been blooming for family-owned Longmont Florist — and all things considered, it’s been weathering the COVID-19 storm.

“We’re extremely lucky to already have the digital infrastructure in place,” said Nate Golter, general manager and future owner of the floral shop that his parents currently run. “We’ve actually seen the delivery side growing — people want to show love to others they can’t physically see, and flowers are a great way to do that.”

That’s not to say everything has been rosy. After the lockdown, sales dropped precipitously before the business adopted tactics such as contactless delivery and ramping up online marketing, including a social media campaign to give flowers to community helpers.

entire staff. The all-hands-on-deck effort saw returning employees repositioned as a frontdoor host, bartender and flex positions to focus on deep cleaning and structural work involving concrete and resanding and sealing the bar top.

As Peak View reopens with an extended outdoor patio and partnership with nearby Sportsbook Bar & Grill to provide a catered menu, Peters assures that the focus remains on patron safety.

“We’re ensuring (that) people are comfortable coming back as things reopen,” he said. “That means spreading tables out by at least 8 feet, limiting groups to eight or less and equipping our staff with masks, gloves and hand sanitizer.”

It’s progress on a slow road back, but Peters is cautiously optimistic as he reflects on what he has learned about managing his business in a crisis.

“I’ve learned you should probably double

A first-year graduate student in MSU Denver’s MBA program, Golter attributed the business’ success in securing a PPP loan to early filing with a local bank that the family already had a relationship with.

Cost-cutting measures included acrossthe-board pay cuts to support part-time employees. The business also rearranged workstations to safer distances and enacted policies to keep face-to-face interactions to a minimum.

“Through this whole thing, we’ve been people-focused,” he said. “Whether it’s employees or customers, they’ve been a big part of why we’ve been successful in the past — and everything we do to move forward is because of the relationships we’ve developed. Never sacrifice your people.”

JOHN ARNOLD

or triple your safety net in case this happens again,” he said. “It’s also important to stay calm; it’s been pretty mentally tough, but you have to just come into every day with an open mindset as you’ll face a new challenge and work to find the right solution.”