By DAVID DUPONT
BG Independent News
After weeks of sitting around her house, watching TV, and doing puzzles, Heidi Feehan was happy to out on a sunny morning strolling down Main Street in Downtown Bowling Green.
Today, Tuesday, May 12, was the first day since the stay at home order that retail shops could welcome customers back in their doors.
“It’s nice being out and supporting small business,” Feehan said.
That’s a sentiment local shops welcome after a period of making do at best. Jen Waddington, of Waddington Jewelers, appreciates the support. The shop was open, albeit for shorter hours. It was also offering curbside pick-up.
She had early rush as people came to pick up items left at the store for repair before the pandemic closed things down. Waddington said she continued to come in to work at the bench. “I’m caught up for the first time in 10 years,” she said.
Many of those who came in were well-wishers, glad to see Waddington’s open.
Still, Waddington said, she knows there are some people who will be reluctant to come out, made leerier by others going out. “There’s a divide.”
Those who venture out, seemingly unconcerned about the prospect of contracting COVID-19, and those who say: “I’m going to stay burrowed in my home until there’s a vaccine.”
Sarah Heugel, who works in the store, was glad to be back and “interacting with other people besides my family.”
Monica Gonzalez, manager at Grounds for Thought, said the shop, which had been closed, but was now open for take-out only, said there’d been a steady stream of customers all morning.
Carrie Rankins, at Eden Fashion Boutique, reported the same. “People are just happy to be out and about.”
Floyd Craft has opened his businesses over the course of the shutdown. Ace Hardware stayed open throughout. The first week was slow, Craft said, but picked up as people started to do outdoor projects.
He also used the hardware store to sell in demand items like puzzles from Ben’s, and for people to pick up orders from the Busy Thimble. He said he and his maintenance man spent a lot of time fetching fabric from the shop. Surprisingly no one complained about their choices.
The Busy Thimble opened about two weeks ago because of the demand for material to make masks. In that time, Craft said, he sold 300 bolts of elastic. The shop still has some, but is restricting the amount people can purchase.
He has more on order but as with so much it is back ordered.
He opened Ben’s over a week ago. The variety store could have been open throughout because it sells personal care products and office supplies. He was advised by his wife, Charlotte, and his daughter, Amy Craft-Ahrens, proprietor of For Keeps, which opened Tuesday, that some people may appreciate Ben’s being open, but others may resent it.
Though he was left with lots of Easter merchandise, he doesn’t regret closing.
Right now, his number one concern, he said, is the health of his employees. He’s asking people to wear masks, and offering them to those who don’t have their own. That’s diminished his stock. So, he has that on order as well.
Getting products, Craft said, is going to be a continuing problem from now until the end of the year.
The trade shows he attends to order goods for the stores will not happen.
He’s now at the point of considering what will be available for Christmas. It’s time to put together his catalog and he’s worried that he’ll not be able to get the toys and decorations he needs, given they are manufactured in China.
“There’s going to be a shortage,” Craft said. He’s confident, though, that his long-standing relationships and good reputation with suppliers will help him get some of what he needs.
Waddington’s faces similar issues. Manufacturers in Chicago and other urban centers are shut down, and many of the supplies they need come from India and China, which are also closed down.
Trade shows have been canceled, Waddington said, but there are still traveling company representatives.
There just might not be as much selection, she said.
The holidays seem far away, she said, but she knows as a retailer they’re not.
“I’m hoping that by Christmas people are used to whatever the new norm is,” she said, and that they’ll make up for the lost sales then. “There’s been a big push to support small businesses, so hopefully at Christmas time people will remember that.”
