Here’s a thought…
In these challenging times, can we each support 5 businesses until the end of the year?
As an entrepreneur who has faced a few challenges, I know how difficult it is to keep a small business going – especially during times of upheaval. Ideally, the government would support small businesses during this period by covering at least some of their monthly expenses until the situation improves. Malaysia and Canada are among some of the companies that have done this for their citizens. In India, unfortunately, this kind of support has not been available for small businesses, for various reasons.
If you have the means (if you are still earning a steady income from your work, for example), please identify 5 small businesses around you that may not be able to sustain themselves through this crisis.
– Find out what their operating costs are: how much do they need per month to run their business on a no profit, no loss basis. Please make sure they are adding a living wage for themselves in these operating costs.
– Your next step is to convince as many neighbors as possible, to commit to buying from these businesses for the next 6 months. These purchases could be in the range of Rs.5000-7000 per shopper per month, across the 5 businesses… money that you would spend anyway on groceries, food, clothes, stationery, etc. This isn’t a lot if you offset it against the money saved during the lock down (fuel, eating out, movie nights with family, etc.)
Here’s the math:
A group of 20 people contributing 5,000 – 7,000 INR per month to these businesses works out to 1,00,000 to 1,40,000 per month. Divide that between 5 businesses and it works out to 20,000 – 28,000 INR per business for each month. That may not be enough to cover their entire operating costs, but it will go a long way towards helping these businesses stay open through the COVID-19 crisis.
Let’s also consider some other benefits here:
– Small businesses make your neighborhood safer. When you shop regularly at these places, you build a good relationship with the store owners, and they tend to look out for you. In these difficult times, it’s our turn to look out for them.
– Small businesses increase the value of your neighborhood. Seen purely from an economic lens, the right thing to do would be to invest in them because they make your neighborhood a more valuable place.
– By spending locally, you enrich your community and make it stronger. You will also reduce your carbon footprint considerably.
You may wonder why we’re asking you to do the obvious; you’re probably already buying from your neighborhood stores. However, this is about making a commitment to the small businesses: that you and your friends/neighbors will support for at least the next 6 months.Knowing that they are supported in this way will help them plan better, and may even be the driver behind their decision to stay open. Small businesses often struggle to generate a decent revenue; having some advance knowledge that at least some revenue is assured, will really be very helpful for them.
How would you improve on this idea? Let us know in the comments below. Or write to us at info@journeyswithmeaning.org. We’d also love to hear from you if you decide to initiate this in your locality…
Stay safe, everyone! Until next time 🙂
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