Business Survival Strategies | COVID-19 | Laundry Business

Business Survival Strategies In Lockdown

 

Small Business Survival Plan for COVID-19-Laundry Business

Mandatory shutdowns and social distancing to prevent the spread of pandemic coronavirus, people are wondering how to go about normal activities like washing clothes. Washing clothes during the coronavirus pandemic could be more complicated than it used to be. Here we will be discussing, what are the business survival strategies for small businesses. 

When you leave your home to buy groceries, for example, there is a possibility that your clothes will become contaminated with the virus. The virus that causes COVID-19, can live up to too many hours outside the physical body, counting on the surface it lands on.

COVID-19 spreads in small droplets expelled from the nose or mouth of an infected person after coughing or sneezing. A cough can produce droplets up to about 30 times smaller than the width of a person's hair.

A recent study by Neeltje van Doremalen, a virologist at the US National Institutes of Health. USA (NIH) and colleagues at Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Hamilton, Montana, on the lifespan of the virus on different surfaces, suggested that the virus could survive. up to 24 hours on cardboard and 2-3 days on plastic and chrome-plated steel surfaces.

The study also found that the virus can survive and remain infectious while floating in the air for 3 hours after being coughed.

So even if you don't touch anything while you're out there, there's a chance that you might just test the polluted air, the virus could also get trapped inside the fibers of your clothes.

Survival Strategies For Small Businesses

However, Vincent Munster, head of the virus ecology section at Rocky Mountain Laboratories, suggested that the virus could be dried more quickly with natural absorbent fibers. The virus is believed to weaken faster in clothing than on hard surfaces.

"We speculate that thanks to the porous material, it dries quickly and can stick to the fibers," he told BBC.com. No study has yet determined exactly how long the virus will survive on clothing.

The U.S.-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The USA recommends that clothing worn outdoors be washed immediately with the warmest and most appropriate water together with a good quality detergent.

It has been proven that the hot water with the soap effectively deactivates the deadly virus, the hotter the water the best. Almost all the virus above 75 degrees Celsius kill the flu viruses found. Washing clothes manually by hand or washing it using the washing machine, care has to be taken to wash the hands properly with the soap and disinfectantIf you do not have time to wash clothes immediately, please collect the clothes in laundry bag till the time you take out for a wash and properly clean the laundry bags after removing the clothes for washing.

Business Survival Strategies for Laundry Business:

It would not be wrong to say that these current crises are none other than those faced by small entrepreneurs in the recent past. Below are the issues addressed and the actions that might make a difference in keeping the employees and customers.

Every crisis brings an unseen opportunity, with it testing the limits of our patients and the power of human optimism. 

Contact nearby hospitals to get their linen washed during a pandemic. There can be a temporary agreement made with COVID hospitals to get their linen washed for a short period of time.

Aware of the customers nearby saying that the clothes are washed and disinfected at this particular laundry.

Immediate Financial Adjustments:

The greatest concern for most entrepreneurs initially was how to pay their bills now, this week, next week, and for how long. However, this is the most difficult question to answer right now. Here are some of the important steps to be taken immediately on the financial front.

  • Cutting down on unnecessary costs that are not securing key business functions.
  • List down the fixed and variable costs, the fixed cost has to be tackled first. create a priority list and keep the provision for the most important and set the timing of when they are is going to be due.
  • Employees are the greatest assets to the company, layoffs (unpaid time off), termination or deep cuts may not get them back.
  • Create additional financial revenue sources.
  • Think of additional resources like overdraft or short term loans. 

Organization policies for COVID-19:

Use of conference calls and cam calls is preferred when communicating. It is wise to follow the CDC guidelines as and when they are published like social distancing, clean work hygiene, Follow the guidelines of the federal, local or state government timely directives regarding guidance to employers and safety measures to employees.

Government tax Payments:

Tax payment extension up to 15th July for individuals and small business owners. Check the slabs as declared. Payment of payroll taxes is not extended, penalties and interest are significant for non-payment of payroll taxes.

Disaster Assistance Loan:

The Small Business Administration has authorized loans to small business owners of up to 20 lakhs. This is a term loan for 30 years’ tenure with the lowest interest rate to cover business debts, cover payrolls, and business operating costs. The owner needs to provide a personal guarantee and provide financials to qualify.

One may feel this to be a safe and secure logical choice, but it is again a loan that needs to be paid back. This business is getting by without this assistance, one should not get into this alternative as it is a debt and needs to be paid back.

Remote working Pattern:

Many small entrepreneurs do not practice working remotely, and will probably be doing it for the first time, as done by other MNC day and night shifts. These MNC companies can adopt a remote work environment very fast compared to the traditional business operators as some of them may have a practice of operating the weekend operations remotely.

If you are operating on a server, you need to set up a VPN access for the employees to operate their home computers connected to work computers. Set-forth implementation and expectation procedure for the weekly and productive reports to be completed on a daily basis.

Marketing and Sales Strategies:

Make sure that you have communicated to your customers that you are open there for business and that they know how to interact with your organization. Make it easy for them to access your organization for the purchase of services or commodities. Social media presence is very important to keep your customers updated. Prepare a newsletter and shoot an email to your customers for further updates and presence online. Communicate any further changes to your plan with regular updates.

Find new opportunities by being creative to market and sell the product. This is the right time to be in touch with existing customers and develop relations with them. Offer discounts if ordered from a service or product during this crisis.

R & D, Service, Operations, and Product Development:

This is the best time to develop a reputation with the clients and tackle those relations. This is the time to rethink the changes you were planning to make to improve the productivity of the organization. If you know that you have enough time on hand, train the subordinate with the available skills you have to deliver.

Strategic Business Survival Plan for 2021:

This is the right time to make a strategic plan for your business in 2020. Make modifications required, projects which are on the wish list but did not have time to work on, then this is the time to work on all these projects.

Evaluate the inventory at the factory, make the tally of the stock available, otherwise, it is not possible in the flow of production. Coordinating with dealers and subordinates and giving them hope of business after lock-down.

Employer and Employee Relations:

This is a time when the patients and endurance are shown by the business owners. Set a strategy and be calm in the storm and show leadership. As things are changing do make plans for a week or two instead of planning for months. Here are some steps to be considered with your team.

1. Focus on your key people in the organizations. Ultimately it is the people who make the organization run. Give assurance to the employees that they are protected. 

2.  Adapt to the new plans as you will be leaving with these changes once the crisis is over.

3.  Stop hiring new candidates, unless it is very necessary.

Unfortunately, hard decisions had to be made to make the talent assessment in the company. How will your business be different if this person is not working next week?

Many of us will learn to sustain our businesses in the crisis, and develop relations and help each other in a difficult time.