January’s record-breaking stretch of snow might be over, but its effects linger for local businesses.
With people snowed in starting on Jan. 15 and resulting dangerous road conditions, many Knoxville businesses stayed closed for days. One of those was K Brew, which shut down for five and a half days.
K Brew CEO Pierce LaMacchia told Knox News the coffee shop lost a quarter month’s worth of business between closures and decreased foot traffic. Combined with planned closed days during the holiday season, businesses are facing financial pressure because they still have fixed expenses like rent and salaries.
“The biggest impact for us is the team getting paid less than they’re normally paid, and in some cases, not paid at all if they’re completely hourly,” LaMacchia said. “That puts pressure on us to open as quickly as possible.”
Penne For Your Thoughts at 9430 S. Northshore Drive closed on Jan. 15 and 16, and owner Geoffrey Bernstein opened on Jan. 17 to virtually no business.
On top of losing business, Bernstein was worried food would spoil and have to be thrown out. Luckily, Penne doesn’t stock much excess food and wasn’t closed long enough to have to throw anything away.