MOLINE, ILLINOIS (April 20, 2020) — The Quad Cities Chamber surveyed businesses on April 13, 2020, to get a pulse on their status during the coronavirus pandemic. 243 surveys were completed.
Current business status
- 73% of respondents said they are open for business;
- The majority (81%) have not had someone test positive for COVID-19 or have any COVID-19 symptoms;
- 88% of the closed businesses have 50 or fewer employees;
- Of those businesses currently open, 25% have laid off employees and 7% have plans to lay off employees in the near future;
- 22% of businesses that are temporarily closed have not laid off any employees, but the majority (56%) have laid off all employees; and
- The majority of businesses (79%) that laid off employees indicate they will re-hire former employees, however 6% of businesses said it is not at all/not very likely they will re-hire
Financial assistance
- 68% of businesses applied for federal funding and 26% for state-funding;
- The Paycheck Protection Program was the most popular program;
- The mean amount of federal funding requested was $457,036, and requests ranged from $10,000 to $6 million; and
- Respondents indicate forgivable loans and grants tend to be more impactful than traditional loans.
Looking ahead
- Post shelter-in-place, the top 3 items businesses that are temporarily closed need financial assistance for are employee payroll, utilities, and rent;
- Of those businesses still open, 43% indicated they may need help with payroll after shelter-in-place orders are lifted, while 40% said they would need no financial assistance;
- Businesses reported that the second quarter will be worse than the first quarter of 2020; and
- Businesses were split on whether business will increase or decrease in the third and fourth quarters of 2020.
The top 3 resources businesses have found helpful during the coronavirus pandemic are financial institutions, accountants, and the Chamber of Commerce.
