The COVID-19 pandemic presented challenges in many aspects of life around the globe, and in Columbia County, businesses did not escape the impact of the Coronavirus.
There were many challenges that the pandemic presented small businesses, but people may be surprised to learn there were positives coming out of the pandemic as well.
Paul Vogel, the Executive Director of the Columbia Economic Team (CET), detailed the mixed developments businesses experienced during the past several years.
“No question, the pandemic was too much for some businesses to survive. Between emergency pandemic restrictions, employees afraid or unable to work due to illness or childcare issues, the challenges were myriad, and some businesses couldn’t adapt,” Vogel said. “Positive impacts, however, include changes in many peoples’ work circumstances that motivated them to branch out on their own and start new businesses… businesses of all types. That’s good for our small business economy and diversity of goods and services in our communities.”
Small Business Development Center
One of the initiatives the CET took to support small businesses and growth in the county is the development of the Small Business Development Center (SBDC). The CET started the SBDC during the year 2021/2022.
It was borne out of reviewing the business finances of hundreds of small companies and organizations throughout the process of running four grant rounds of emergency relief funds, Vogel said.
“None of those grants turned a business around, but combined with other relief, certainly kept many going. But the important thing was the clear discovery that investing in solid, credible, accountable basic business advising was the best possible investment,” Vogel said. “Every city invested; the county invested; we recruited the statewide small business network as nearly a 50% investor, and we set a responsible start-up period to get established.”
Vogel and the CET were told they shouldn’t be surprised if they didn’t have clients within the first 12 months. Vogel said the SBDC exceeded expectations and that within the first year, they had over 100 contacts and “scores” of registered clients. Vogel expects that it is a number they will “probably double this year.”
SBDC Director Jason Moon said that their clientele base is strong and that they’ve continued to grow in the months since it was founded.
“Following the easing of shutdowns and the implementation of the Columbia County Small Business Development Center and resource center, we’ve witnessed the revitalization of existing businesses and the emergence of new ones. Currently, over 120 SBDC clients and averaging around ten new clients each month,” Moon said.
The SBDC has hired an additional business advisor and administrative support to increase capacity to meet needs and demand and continue to offer the service and recourse to all small businesses across the county, according to Vogel.
Vogel and Moon noted that while they have supported numerous businesses, there are also small businesses and start-ups outside of their network, so the actual number of businesses that have come out of the pandemic is higher than its membership.
The SBDC helps clients prepare to start and maintain their businesses with various services tailored to succeeding in Columbia County.
“We offer free 1:1 confidential business advising, and are your business resource for helping you start, run and grow your best business, so you can thrive in our local economy,” Moon said. “This includes business plan development, navigating business regulatory processes, helping you manage cash flow challenges, just to name a few.”
Challenges for small businesses
Vogel said the CET has seen consistent start-up and expansion across many sectors. The hospitality industry (i.e., Restaurants, coffee shops, cafes, specialty shops, and food trucks) is on the rise, and there is a resurgence in Rainier, St. Helens, and elsewhere, according to Vogel.
“We hope for success for all. With small businesses, statistically, a high percentage fail in the first three years; if you’ve made it four years, your chances of success are significantly improved,” Vogel said. “We’re still inside that four-year window, but between the new SBDC and now the Growing Rural Oregon (GRO) entrepreneurial ecosystem initiative – we have substantial new tools in place – at no charge to business owners.”
In Clatskanie, Vogel said the SBDC and CET would be able to help over time because it is difficult to tell if business closures in Clatskanie are a result of the pandemic or just failed or untested businesses.
“Clatskanie has lost many storefront businesses recently including The Clatskanie Market, Clatskanie Floral Shop, The Clatskanie Mercantile, and Singing Dogs Jewelry. Plus, Grannis Square remains vacant; 2 major buildings are for sale, and Colvin’s is for sale. Some have ventured to say at least 40% of Clatskanie storefronts are vacant,” Vogel said.
One of the biggest challenges businesses faced during the pandemic was the changing regulations and criteria that customers and employers needed to follow.
“What I can say is that our Clatskanie businesses struggled through COVID by trying to keep up with the restrictions and be compliant with the ever-changing regulations,” Clatskanie Chamber of Commerce President Sarah Johnson said. “Many had staffing issues and were negatively impacted financially.”
The challenges that new businesses face begin with getting started, but the real test is being able to maintain what has been built and continued growth.
“Knowing your market, developing a customer base, building a brand, hiring the right team, brick and mortar space in the county, having a plan in place for cash flow, and how to access capital are the biggest challenges I see here at our center,” Moon said.
With COVID restrictions lifting in the past two years, it is difficult to attribute their closures to the pandemic.
“The specific impact and ripple effect of COVID on cities within Columbia County is still unfolding. However, each city was resilient in their own way,” Vogel said. “Small business support resources of all kinds were distributed countywide. At this point on the continuum, businesses that are closing either may or may not be related to the pandemic, more than a year out from restrictions being lifted.”
One recent closure was Cherry Bomb’s Cafe in Rainier, which was forced to close just months after opening its doors. Before they could open, they needed to do a host of renovations to bring the business up to code. When asked whether Moon has seen similar cases, he said, “The short answer is yes, unfortunately.”
“Many times when a business signs into a lease agreement, there are tenant improvements to make it fit their vision for the business and space. These improvements can be very costly and not fully realized ahead of signing a contract with the building owner,” Moon said. “In Cherry Bomb’s case, they put in over 25k in plumbing upgrades, and 15k in electrical. This was in addition to paying $2000 each month to the building owner in rent; since November 1, 70k in total upgrades and repairs, and 16k in rent, and an agreement couldn’t be reached to keep this brand new business in place and the time needed to establish itself. Our hope is that our building owners within Columbia County are supporters and proponents of our Entrepreneurial Ecosystem.”
In the coming years, Vogel expects Columbia County to continue to grow. Vogel said that there are a number of large industrial tracts that are now fully platted, served by utilities, and are ripe for development.
For their part, the Clatskanie Chamber of Commerce waived membership dues for 2020 and 2021 and only charged half-price membership dues for 2022 to help provide a little cost relief, according to Johnson. In addition, the Chamber adapted to virtual meetings to continue providing guest speakers and networking opportunities for our local businesses during the pandemic.
The GRO initiative, for which CET has contracted with the City of St. Helens (and is funded by the Ford Family Foundation), will be instrumental. It will be important for both entrepreneurial, high-growth scale business start-ups and for developing key resource and asset inventories and maps for funders, lenders, commercial properties, and professional service providers, according to Vogel.
CET, as the Travel Oregon Destination Management Organization (DMO), has obtained multiple tourism funding grants for beautification, asset improvement, and destination development in communities across the county, Vogel said.
“Additionally, we applied for and were accepted as one of a few DMOS for Travel Oregon’s ongoing Destination Development and Destination Downtown workshops. We held a series of workdays in June and July with volunteer leaders from all over the county, developing manageable downtown development strategies, techniques, and projects that can be executed in any of our communities,” Vogel said.