Surviving The Pandemic

   Wow, It still feels all so serial.  It’s been about four weeks of shelter in place, with the news and restrictions worsening every week.  From previous blogs ya all know I am a full time RVT ( Registered Veterinarian Technician) and so with having an essential job I am still full time, along with living on 5 acres and my only neighbor being over 30 yards away life has been secluded for almost a year anyway.  My point being things did not seem much different in the beginning but I’m now finally getting cabin fever! I WANT to go places! Whaa Whaa Whaa! I was just remembering the days when Bob and I could just plan a quick weekend to Santa Barbera, or Monterey. We would pack up the bikes, spend the day with a fun ride to their local park then eat lunch somewhere new and fun.  These days are sorely missed and a small neurotic piece of my brain wonders if they ever will return. The rest of my brain leans on the side of common sense and knows life will resume to normalcy. This too shall pass. 

     This blog is not about me though duhhh. It’s about starting Vai and right now like most businesses we have slowed down and what has hurt the most is all our events being postponed not knowing if they will get scheduled.  Vai also got invited to be a part of the Fitness Fair at the 2020 LA County Fair, Sep 4th – the 7th. I have high hopes that the event will stay on schedule. Here are the positives and negatives to Covid-19 affecting Vai Athletica 

Positives: 

       1) We are so new and just started selling last November and do not have employees at this time.

       2) We have very minimal overhead, so very very minimal monthly bills

       3) We are an e-commerce business and our office and inventory resides at my residence and I do not charge rent.:) 

       4) At this moment we can afford to be on standby, lay low and wait for this pandemic to run its course. 

Negatives 

1. We have not been able to attend our events, which not only generates sales but also helps promote Vai / getting the word out.
2. It’s very scary being on hold and not knowing what lays ahead with this whole pandemic and shelter in place, especially witnessing other small businesses facing going out of business! 
3. Vai is already new and unknown, I have a full time job, I am a full time mom, this being on hiatus only leaves me in a “This is impossible mood”.   My spirit is a little down and I fear this will take my drive for success and squash it. 

Quick Tip: Small businesses forced to adapt to COVID-19 outbreak

By Marissa Nall   / Friday, March 27th, 2020  /   

Small businesses on the Central Coast are finding ways to adapt to sweeping new coronavirus restrictions, staying connected to customers even as they keep them at arm’s length. Whether it’s through online orders and curbside pickup or careful limits to the number of customers in a store, business owners are changing the way their products are sold. But without a clear timeline for the closures, planning for the long term remains a challenge. Smaller businesses “get hit the hardest, because they don’t have cash reserves, generally,” said Nicki Parr, associate director of strategic initiatives for WEV. “They’re operating on smaller margins. Anything they are making is going right back into the business.”  

      The article continues on to talk about non profit orgs stepping up and lending a hand and other resources available.  There is a good vibe out there that we will overcome this. I’m going to put my big girl positive pants on and keep moving forward.  We have recently hired a couple team videographers to create us a 30 sec video and still shots for our website and social media marketing. They were recommended by our last photographer James Kao Foto @jameskaofoto. I looked up their work and am very excited to see the out come of our video from @coupleawanderers. Thanks Camille you’re a total sweetheart!

Thanks For Reading 

Heidi Parker