California's Small Businesses and the Impact of COVID-19

We are seeking information from small business owners in California about the challenges they’re facing as a result of the COVID-19 public health emergency. Please answer these questions as openly and honestly as you can. Your answers will help us understand the challenges small businesses are facing across the country, inform policymakers and philanthropists about needs stemming from this crisis, and identify best practices in adapting to the new challenges Main Streets are grappling with.

This survey was prepared by Main Street America. Several questions were adapted or taken from surveys conducted by Marietta Main Street in Marietta, Ohio; by the Office of Business Opportunities in the City of Columbia, South Carolina; and by the Office of Economic Development in Seattle, Washington.

The results of this survey will only be presented in aggregate form. All personal information and individual responses will be kept confidential.

This survey will be open for participation through 5pm PT on Friday, May 22nd.

(Para participar en español, por favor haga clic aquí.)

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* 1. What kind of business do you operate?

Food service (i.e., restaurant, bar, cafe)

Grocery

Non-food retail

Nonprofit / social services

Health practitioner / healthcare

Accommodations (i.e., hotel, motel, bed and breakfast)

Professional services (i.e., banking, legal, design, real estate)

Personal care (i.e., beauty/barbershop, nail salon)

Gym or fitness-focused business

Arts-focused business (i.e., art gallery or studio)

Other (please specify)

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* 2. How long has your business been in operation?

Less than a year

1-2 years

3-5 years

6-10 years

More than 10 years

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* 3. Would you characterize the ownership of the business in any of the following ways? (Check all that apply)

Family owned

Publicly traded company

Locally owned

Veteran owned

Cooperatively owned

Minority or person of color owned

Out-of-state ownership

Woman owned

LGBTQ owned

Other (please specify)

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* 4. Do you own or lease your business space?

Own

Lease

Not applicable - No physical space

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* 5. In what type of location does your business operate?

Storefront or shared storefront

Home business

Incubator/accelerator

Office or shared office without a storefront

Online sales only - No physical location

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* 6. How many people does your business employ? (Please enter '1' if you are a sole owner-operator.)

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* 7. Does your business have an online sales component?

Yes

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* 8. If your business has an online sales component, approximately what portion of your overall revenue comes from online sales?

0-25%

26-50%

51-75%

More than 75%

Not applicable

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* 9. Has your business suspended storefront operations as a result of the COVID-19 public health emergency?

Yes

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* 10. About what percentage or proportion of your employees have you laid off or furloughed as a result of COVID-19?

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* 11. How has COVID-19 affected your business? (Please check all that apply)

Off-site working options

Change of business model

Change in insurance rates

Loss of revenue

Event cancellation

Supply chain disruptions

Established alternative mode of business operation to sell and deliver products (i.e., online, telephone)

Added expenses to mitigate public safety risks (i.e., cleaning supplies, gloves, masks, etc.)

Business closures (voluntary or mandated)

Employee layoffs / workforce displacement

Change of business hours

Reduced participation at gatherings and events

Enhanced secondary mode of business operation to sell and deliver products (i.e,. online, telephone)

Other (please specify)

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* 12. How did your business revenue in April 2020 compare with your business revenue in April 2019? (If your business hadn't yet opened in April 2019, please compare your revenue with an average monthly revenue.)

My business didn't generate any revenue in April 2020

Revenue was down by more than 90%

Revenue was down by more than 75%

Revenue was down by between 50 and 75%

Revenue was down by between 25 and 50%

Revenue was down by between 0 and 25%

Revenue was normal

Revenue was up by between 0 and 25%

Revenue was up by between 25 and 50%

Revenue was up by between 50 and 75%

Revenue was up by between 75 and 90%

Revenue was up by more than 90%

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* 13. If business disruption continues at the current rate, how soon will your business be at risk of closing permanently?

Less than one month

1-2 months

3-5 months

More than five months

Not a concern

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* 14. Did you submit an application for any federal financial relief programs related to COVID-19, such as the Payroll Protection Program (PPP), Emergency Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), SBA Express Bridge Loan, or SBA Debt Relief? (Please check all that apply)

Payroll Protection Program (PPP)

Emergency Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL)

SBA Express Bridge Loan

SBA Debt Relief

I did not apply for any of these federal financial relief programs

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* 15. How much federal financial relief have you received related to COVID-19?

Not applicable because I did not apply

I applied for federal financial relief but did not receive any money

I received federal financial relief but would prefer not to say how much

Dollar amount of financial relief my business received from federal programs related to COVID-19

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* 16. At this time, what are you most concerned about? (Please choose all that apply)

Customer traffic

Getting inventory/supplies

Losing work (i.e., clients, projects, sales)

Losing employees

Paying this month’s rent / mortgage

Making payroll this pay period and beyond

Employee’s financial welfare

Accessing government support related to the COVID-19 public health emergency

Other (please specify)

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* 17. What types of assistance would be most helpful to your business? (Please check all that apply)

Technical training on website development and e-commerce

How to protect my employees from COVID-19

Information on costs and risks for providing new services like delivery

Information on financial assistance over the next 90 days

How to protect my customers from COVID-19

Penalty-free extensions on expenses (rent, utilities, supplies, inventory)

Technical training on social media

Information on succession planning

Immediate guidance on how to modify my business model

Information on selling businesses

Other (please specify)

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* 18. Which of the following best describes your feelings about California being one of the last states to start reopening businesses?

Proud - California is doing what is best for the public interest, no matter the economic impacts.

Comfortable - Though the economic impacts are serious, I believe mandated business closures are necessary, given public health concerns.

Concerned - Business impacts should have equal consideration alongside public health concerns, and reopening should be prioritized in the near term.

Ashamed - California should not restrict the private decisions of business owners, no matter the public health concerns.

Other (please specify)

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* 19. In what California city is your business located?

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* 20. What is the name of your business? (Optional)

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* 21. What is your email address? (Optional)

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* 22. May we email you a follow-up survey in 2-3 weeks to find out how your business is faring in response to the COVID-19 public health emergency?

Yes

Thank you for participating!