As virus cases surge in Arizona, Florida, California, Texas and other states, the conversation has begun about whether it makes sense to at least partially close businesses like restaurants again.
What would that look like?
If you run a restaurant, you’d have way more food than you’d need to fulfill takeout orders, to start.
“What do you do with [food] long-term? You could try to sell it off to supermarkets,” said Mike Haller, a manager at UL Everclean, which advises restaurants on food safety.
Or you could sell the food directly to consumers — turning your restaurant into a little grocery store. You could also freeze the food and hope it stays good for a while.
Also, you’d have to call your suppliers and tell them actually you won’t be needing those 10 cartons of tomatoes, and you don’t know how many you need.
“Most of these food facilities, they go off of same-store sales so they can look back in history and find out like, well, we need so many pounds of shrimp this week. And with these disruptions, that makes it an absolute nightmare for knowing what to order because these are unprecedented times,” Haller said.
Shutting down again would also hurt sales. And a restaurant is not going to make up the difference with takeout.
All of this puts small restaurants in particular at risk.
Vlad Rikhter is CEO of the tech platform Zenput. It advises big restaurant chains like Domino’s and Sweetgreen. He said if you own one location and it’s in a place under mandated lockdown, that could wipe you out. “Especially if you just ordered $10,000 worth of inventory, and you had to toss $5,000 of it out because you can’t hold it for three, four, five weeks, or whatever the time period is.”
Rikhter said the big chains would be in a better position to get through another round of lockdowns because they have lots of cash and lots of locations.
Related Stories
Will the federal government extend the extra COVID-19 unemployment benefits?
It’s still unclear. Congress and President Donald Trump are deciding whether to extend the extra $600 a week in unemployment benefits workers are getting because of the pandemic. Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia believes the program should not be extended, and White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said the additional money is disincentivizing some workers from returning to their jobs. Democrats want to keep providing the money until January.
As states lift restrictions, are people going back to stores and restaurants?
States have relaxed their restrictions, and many of us have relaxed, too. Some people have started to make exceptions for visiting restaurants, if only for outdoor dining. Some are only going to places they trust are being extra cautious. But no one we’ve talked to has really gone back to normal. People just aren’t quite there yet.
Will surges in COVID-19 cases mean a return to lockdowns?
In many areas where businesses are reopening, cases of COVID-19 are trending upwards, causing some to ask if the lockdowns were lifted too soon, and if residents and businesses might have to go through it all again. So, how likely is another lockdown, of some sort? The answer depends on who you ask. Many local officials are now bullish about keeping businesses open to salvage their economies. Health experts, though, are concerned.
You can find answers to more questions here.
As a nonprofit news organization, our future depends on listeners like you who believe in the power of public service journalism.
Your investment in Marketplace helps us remain paywall-free and ensures everyone has access to trustworthy, unbiased news and information, regardless of their ability to pay.
Donate today — in any amount — to become a Marketplace Investor. Now more than ever, your commitment makes a difference.
"need" - Google News
June 25, 2020 at 06:03AM
https://ift.tt/37Z08Z7
Will restaurants need to pull back as pandemic worsens? - Marketplace
"need" - Google News
https://ift.tt/3c23wne
https://ift.tt/2YsHiXz
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Will restaurants need to pull back as pandemic worsens? - Marketplace"
Post a Comment