APRIL 3-9, 2020
We’ve blown up the typical lineup of the paper this week to bring you a wide-ranging package of profiles, focusing on small businesses that have been impacted by the coronavirus crisis. We ask the owners how they’re seeking to persevere—and potentially gain a competitive advantage when normalcy returns. Also in this week’s issue, Samm Quinn explores how nearly $350 billion in federal money earmarked by the CARES Act could help keep Indiana small businesses going. And Mickey Shuey explains how Indianapolis’ major cultural institutions—such as the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and Indiana Repertory Theatre—are assessing the damage and planning to survive big hits to their operating revenue.
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Loan pool may help small businesses survive ‘hibernation’
Nearly $350 billion in forgivable federally backed loans could be a lifeline for small businesses and their employees amid the COVID-19 outbreak.
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‘It’s all ruined—there’s no demand,’ hotelier says
MHG President Sanjay Patel has been through tough times in the hotel industry before—but nothing quite like this.
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Shuttered hair salons face ‘overwhelming’ challenges
Desi Spears and Foster-Adesokan have both heard from clients who want to make appointments for when they reopen their shops.
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Not the grand opening coffee shop owner wanted
On the day Rachel Priddy finally got word from her contractor that she could apply for a certificate of occupancy to open her coffee shop in Carmel, Gov. Eric Holcomb ordered all restaurants to shut down in-person dining.
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Circle Kombucha sales are down 50%, but CEO’s outlook bright
For now—although some restaurants can still sell Circle Kombucha with takeout orders—most of the company’s sales are taking place at about 150 grocery stores in Indiana and the region.
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Gym finds going virtual isn’t panacea for revenue problem
Naptown Fitness is offering its members a different kind of carryout as a way to stay healthy while gyms are closed during the pandemic.
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Firm trying to keep employees safe while churning out medical refrigerators
The company, which has about 350 employees, makes medical-grade refrigerators, freezers and defrosters for vaccines, medicines, blood products and other perishable medical supplies.
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Coronavirus has ‘heartbreaking’ impact on family-owned funeral home chain
Jim Shirley is one small-business executive who isn’t worried about a decline in business during the pandemic. If anything, he’s worried about a surge.
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ClusterTruck food-delivery firm misses office orders
About 60% of the company’s sales typically happen at lunch and are delivered to workplaces, which have been stripped down to only the most essential people.
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Museums, performance venues expect to withstand closures
Facing millions of dollars in lost revenue from the COVID-19 outbreak, major arts and cultural attractions throughout Indianapolis are slashing budgets, cutting staff and dipping into reserves or endowments to make ends meet.
Read MoreVirus could push state jobless numbers to historic level
The number of Hoosiers filing for unemployment benefits has skyrocketed over the past two weeks.
Read MoreQ&A with Jacob Cantu, West Fork Whiskey tasting room manager
Cantu has created the distillery’s cocktail-to-go concept, which has been a significant boost to revenue amid the COVID-19 outbreak.
Read MoreExecutives without answers try to salve jittery investors
Many of Indiana’s 54 public companies have withdrawn their earnings guidance for the year, even as executives emphasize their belief that they are positioned well for the long term.
Read MoreWitham Health Services sued over pediatrician convicted of child molestation
The lawsuit, brought on behalf of one of the victims of Dr. Jonathon Cavins, says a 2004 sexual battery case against him should have been a red flag.
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Local developer Gershman buys old Books & Brews building in Broad Ripple
The firm is keeping its options open for the site—including upgrading the existing building or redeveloping it entirely.
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Lilly teams with British startup to develop autoimmune medicines
In a deal that could eventually be worth close to a billion dollars, Eli Lilly and Co. is teaming with a British biopharmaceutical company in one of the hottest areas in medical research.
Read MoreWondering if you qualify for unemployment? The answer is probably yes.
State and federal authorities have expanded the eligibility for unemployment benefits significantly, meaning if you’re out of work and didn’t qualify under the old rules, you likely will now.
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Rush to market: COVID-19 puts Roche’s emergency response team to test
Compressing a two-year job into nine weeks is a remarkable—almost unheard of—feat. Yet that’s what Roche Diagnostics did when it shipped the first commercially available tests for the novel coronavirus on March 13.
Read MoreAllison Transmission halting production at some Indianapolis sites
Allison said it’s suspending some of its local production lines because the coronavirus outbreak has disrupted supply chains and weakened customer demand.
Read MoreGM says it’s moving as fast as possible to make ventilators in Indiana
Experts on managing factory production say GM is making an extraordinary effort for a company that normally isn’t in the business of producing ventilators.
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EDITORIAL: Having Lilly Endowment on our side is powerful weapon in virus war
The Lilly Endowment has long shown a deep commitment to this city and state, but rarely has it been on display in such a resounding way as during the COVID-19 crisis.
Read MoreNATE FELTMAN: Finding rays of light amid virus storm
The crisis helps us focus on the most important things in our lives: family, community and gratitude.
Read MoreSheila Kennedy: What lessons will we learn from the pandemic?
The most important lesson to be learned by policymakers and plutocrats alike is that fortunate people are secure only when everyone is secure.
Read MoreVIEWPOINT: Businesses can do more in good times to prepare for the bad
I often tell my children that, if you think you’ve saved enough, it probably still isn’t enough. One big hit can be devastating, and we are clearly in the midst of one today.
Read MoreGarrett Mintz: Keeping culture while employees go remote
Remote work removes many of the inconveniences associated with going into work, but it takes away a key component of what makes company culture—connection!
Read MoreKIM: When other investors panic, it’s time to get greedy
Whenever uncertainty abounds, such as the present, the brain seeks to find some semblance of control—even if it is just an illusion of control.
Read MoreMatthew Neff: Now is the time to prepare to restart your business
In venture capital, we like to talk about 90-day sprints. Build a set of objectives, and tactics, that will get a company to a better place in 90 days.
Read MoreLetter: Remember our neighbors in crisis
We’ve been asked as good citizens to prevent the spread of coronavirus by social distancing. Yes—let’s all do our part. But that doesn’t mean you have to close your door—or your mind, or your heart—to friends and neighbors.
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Gas is getting even cheaper, but motorists have nowhere to go
Demand is weak because so many Americans are under shelter-in-place rules and businesses have been closed because of the coronavirus outbreak.
Read MoreCarmel auto finance firm calling it quits after 33 years, terminating 127 employees
Carmel-based auto finance company Coastal Credit LLC plans to end operations and terminate all of its employees by the middle of this year, the company said in a letter to the state.
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MARK MONTIETH: Coach’s exit followed Purdue’s 1980 Final Four run
Coaches don’t usually leave for a smaller program after a big tournament run, but this divorce made sense.
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MARK MONTIETH: The journey of a player and a championship ring
Getting his ring back from the 1980 NCAA championship was nice and all, but David “Poncho” Wright would regain something more important several years later: his life.
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