Finding Hope

When one thinks of spring, a vivid image of flowers blooming and the snow giving way to a greener scenery comes to mind. For restauranteurs and food vendors, spring is wonderful. It is much anticipated because winter is when business is at its slowest.

Well, things haven’t been going as planned...

The COVID-19 has rapidly transformed from a local problem in China to a full-blown pandemic as declared by the World Health Organization. Governments around the world are scrambling to contain the virus as the death toll piles up every day. Some countries such as China and Italy have even imposed drastic measures to prevent the disease from spreading further. 

The United States isn’t exempt from the ravages of the coronavirus. Earlier this month, around 70 cases have been reported as the first wave and reports of the virus here in the US. Now, that number has ballooned to over 1,000. Prominent NBA player Rudy Gobert and his teammate Emmanuel Mudiay are the first confirmed cases in the sports world, while Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson are COVID-19’s first Hollywood victims.

Aside from the obvious toll on people’s health, the virus is also decimating markets. Stock markets around the world are tumbling down while stores and shops around the world are experiencing their slowest days ever. Food businesses are hit extra hard with the whole coronavirus issue. People are staying indoors, either voluntarily or as mandated by the government. Whole offices, such as the Salesforce Tower in San Francisco, are currently working remotely. This is a disaster in the making for the local food joints around offices since 60-70% of their daily revenue are from regulars who work in offices. To make matters even worse is that no one knows when this whole thing is going to blow over. 

In these trying times, it is absolutely imperative that restaurants and other food vendors adapt to the situation. For example, now that a sizable amount of the population is now cooped up in apartments and houses, a scheduled daily meal delivery subscription service might be an attractive alternative for businesses who aren’t getting enough traffic now.

This isn’t the spring time we were all waiting for, but this is the spring time we have been given. Let’s all hope that resolution comes sooner rather than later.
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From your Bonito Poke family, we hope everyone’s doing well and staying safe.