Small Businesses During a Global CrisisBy Valeria QuezadaThe world may be in the midst of a global crisis, but certain people are thriving during this time. Despite the many challenges, some local entrepreneurs have come forward to open up new small businesses. Being stuck at home or jobless has motivated many people to start their own small businesses. Whether it was a push they needed to follow their dream,or a necessity to create income, these small business owners are thriving during this period. Whether it is food, accessories, clothing, or masks, these businesses have been bustling. It is interesting to see the people from our community take a passion and turn it into a career.For instance, meet “Steed’s Sweet Treats,” created and operated by Lorena Rivas. This “sweet” business creates a variety of custom treats such as chocolate covered strawberries, Oreos, pretzel rods, or any other requested treat by the customer. Each order with their own theme, this is perfect for a gift or even just a snack to enjoy on your own during quarantine.When asked what inspired her to start her own business, Lorena said, “My dad had started his own sign business, ER Signs, and I saw how convenient it had become especially now because of the pandemic. I also have a baby and being able to work from home makes it easier for me to care for him.” As a new mother,her business makes it capable to still dedicate full attention to her family and create her own schedule while still making each order unique for her customers. Lorena says that one challenge she faces is contact with customers.She won’t deliver because of the virus,but she takes careful precautions when an order ispicked up. Her advice to anyone wanting to start a small business is, “My advice would be that if they can do it they should because living in a small town like Carlsbad, there is a lot of local support from the community especially since there’s not muchto choose from here.” In the future Lorena hopes to expand “Steed’s Sweet Treats” into a treat shop where she can make a variety of goodies for everyone to enjoy!Another interesting perspective to look at is a seventeen year old teenager gone entrepreneur named Chassity Griego. Chassity owns “Sunrise Sticker Co.,” which launched online July 9 of this year. The website includes a growing selection of stickers and other stationery items. Each sticker is made of a waterproof, weatherproof, and scratch resistant vinyl that insures durability. All stickers are dishwasher safe and made to last. Chassity explains what got her to start her own business, “I have always desired to have my own business but being quarantined is what kick started it. Getting closer to my senior year of high school, made me realize how little time I have left before I head to college. That being said, it also made me realize that I need to begin saving up for college. With having lots of free time on my hands I began drawing up and creating designs which I later turned into stickers for personal use. That’s when the idea hit me, I began to make more designs, turn them into stickers, and then proceed to start up my own website and share it throughout social media.” Chassity loves seeing how happy her business makes others, especially when she gets a message from classmates telling her how
much they love their products and her business. It pushes her to keep improving. The biggest challenge she has faced is lack of client demand and financial challenges. Although she says that anyone wanting to take the leap of faith should, “Keep an open mind, keep it simple, don’t keep quiet about your business, and earn while you build.” Chassity’s main goal was to make people happy, which she accomplished. She says her new goal is to expand, “I don’t expect my business to turn into a huge corporation or anything like such, but I do want it to grow both product wise as well as customer wise.”In the accessory community is small business owner Britney Lechuga, who owns “Lashout Creations.” Lashout Creations consists of lashes, earrings made of wood, leather, stud earrings, and custom engraving. This small business has taken over Facebook, so many people love to order gorgeous earrings from Britney. She workshard to create every order unique to the customer while working a full-time job with Southwest Pharmacy. Britney says, “What inspired me to start my own business is that I had been thinking about making earrings and doing my own lash line. One day I just decided to do it.” One of her favorite things about her business is helping more women feel prettier and more confident with her lashes or earrings. One of the biggest challenges she has faced during the COVID-19 pandemic is getting her material shipped toher in a timely manner, since a lot of orders have been delayed across the entire globe. Sometimes it takes weeks at a time for her materials to arrive. “Some advice I would like to give to people that would like to start their own business is just be patient, things take time and just be proud of what you do! Always follow your dreams and never give up on what you love to do,” advises Britney. Her main goal as an entrepreneur and small business owner is to grow and open the door to new business ventures for Lashout Creations.It is always important to support the local businesses in our community, but now more than ever it is important to show our support. Anything from helping promote, ordering a product, or even complementing these owners on their work goes a long way. For anyone wanting to start a small business but isn’t sure, take that leap of faith. The effort and hard work of these small business owners has paid off, and it will pay off for anyone else. It is truly amazing to see these hardworking people doing their best to thrive as entrepreneurs at a time like this, the global pandemic can slow down our lives but can’t slow down the hard work of these businesses who have adapted and overcome their own challenges.
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