Essential businesses carry on during COVID-19

Business has never been better at Brandon Spirits.

With local bars and restaurants closed, owner Dave Hansen is seeing a welcome increase in foot traffic. 

“People who are normally stopping at the bar are coming in and buying stuff,” he said. “The only challenge for us is trying to keep things stocked, because there are customers we don’t usually have.”

Other retailers are also faring far better than expected during the coronavirus pandemic, which has closed schools through the end of the school year.

Brandon’s Dollar General is one of those thriving, said assistant manager Kim Jacobson. 

“I guess the biggest challenge is people still coming in with their children … and there are kids who still come in to buy candy daily,” she said. 

The store, which is within walking and biking distance of several residential neighborhoods, has taken steps to protect customers by marking 6 feet between customers waiting in line, the recommended distance by the CDC for social distancing.    

Dollar General is also closing an hour early every day to clean, Jacobson said. 

“All the carts and all the baskets and all the counters,” she added. “Everything gets disinfected. All the handles on all the coolers.”

And with school closed, traffic is also steady throughout the day at Sunshine Foods just down the street. 

The number of customers stopping in for groceries is up, said manager Craig Bosch, but the store’s catering business is temporarily kaput. 

Staffing-wise, however, it worked out; Bosch was able to merge Tony’s Catering employees into the grocery division of the business. 

And despite the fact that many people are quarantining, they still have to buy basic necessities.

“We’ve seen a shift in the store as far as buying flour and yeast and making bread, buying rice – a lot of shelf-stable, longer-lasting meals,” Bosch said. “Microwaveable stuff, instant stuff – obviously, people are trying to stretch their budget during this time, and they’re trying to make foods that go further with their dollar.” 

A local grocery store cashier also noted the shift in consumer buying patterns, likening recent shopping to “the day before Thanksgiving.”  

Behind the scenes has changed, too, with food suppliers and distributors. Having lost the school business, milk makers are supplying supermarkets with an abundance, Bosch noted, while cleaning supplies and disinfectants continue to sell out. 

“We’re trying to find different suppliers that we normally don’t use, just to fill the need,” he said. “Inside store sales itself have been good, but overall, I’m losing one third of my sales to catering. That’s at a complete zero.”

As far as keeping carts, baskets and checkout lanes sanitized, the Brandon store has had plenty of help from the town, especially volunteers from Celebrate Community of Brandon. 

“They’ve been an asset here,” Bosch said. “Definitely an asset.”