MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Business leaders say Memphis is resilient but the bounce back from COVID-19 may put the city to the test. The Greater Memphis Chamber is trying to help.
The pandemic forced many businesses to close their doors. Others scaled back drastically, leaving a trail of unemployed workers along the way.
“The chamber is starting up a business recovery task force so we can think about how we begin to help businesses get back on their feet so they can get these people employed again,” said Chamber President Beverly Robertson.
She says they group acting as a resource to answer questions about stimulus money, health regulations and connecting businesses to industry experts. Pre-recorded webinars are available on their website to help businesses navigate through the coronavirus crisis.
“We have free seminars that people can connect with and log on to and hear the professionals,” Robertson said.
There’s information on the disaster recovery loan as well as the Payroll Protection loan.
“We want to help these businesses to get the resources they need to at least be able to exist so they can make it to the point of recovery.”
The organization started the Open 901 directory to publicize businesses still operating in the midst of the pandemic. It also keeps a running tab of immediate job openings.
“Now we have a section on our website that includes a number of companies that have job opportunities available, not next month, but right now.”
Robertson says in light of all the layoffs and closings we hear about, the pipeline for recruiting new companies to Memphis is still open.
“We thought that this would have a very negative impact on us and that we might not be hearing from them,” she said, but “we have had four major calls about Memphis requesting information about sites and locations.”
Agreements won’t allow her to discuss those names but she says that’s a positive sign for the future of the Memphis economy.
The chamber encourages companies to fill out the business impact survey on their website. The Federal Reserve Bank and several small business organizations are using the information to help plan for the future.