Covid-19’s accelerating spread has hampered operations and slowed sales at some companies in a matter of days, but many say they hope precautions adopted during previous surges will help them motor through this one.
Restaurants were among businesses most immediately hit.
Chris Fuselier,
owner of the Blake Street Tavern in downtown Denver, said his business has fallen since the Omicron variant began to be detected in the area and the city instituted new Covid-19-related restrictions last month. “We’ve had a huge slowdown the past three weeks,” he said.
Mr. Fuselier said one of his employees also caught the virus in recent days. He shut down the bar and restaurant’s weekday lunch service last week. “We were hopeful the downtown workers would come back to their offices with the new year,” he said. “Now, companies are telling workers to stay home due to Omicron.”
For the week ended Nov. 28, U.S. restaurant seatings were down 4% from 2019 levels, according to data from the website of reservation service OpenTable. A week later, they were down 9% by the same metrics. The following week, ended Dec. 12, seatings were down 12%, according to the company.
“The last 72 hours is really where things seem to be escalating,” said New York restaurant owner
Gabriel Stulman
on Saturday night, after around nine employees across his four restaurants tested positive for Covid-19. Others were struggling to get tests, he said.
That led to Mr. Stulman’s Joseph Leonard restaurant in Manhattan not having enough staff to open for brunch on Saturday. He had hoped the restaurant could still open for dinner because Saturday is one of its busiest days, making up roughly 25% of the week’s revenue. Then, another positive test came in and he closed the restaurant through Monday. Mr. Stulman’s restaurants are among those seeking more aid from Congress.
Businesses of all kinds have been contending with pandemic-related setbacks for nearly two years, from supply-chain woes and labor shortages to higher costs and shifting government rules. Many businesses closed. But thanks in part to myriad forms of government stimulus and enduring consumer demand, many so far have navigated the pandemic and have…
Read More: Covid-19’s Omicron Variant Starts to Take Toll on Businesses