Hartford Business Journal

16 Hartford Business Journal • November 2, 2020 • www.HartfordBusiness.com By Sean Teehan steehan@hartfordbusiness.com S ince COVID-19 began tear- ing through the U.S. in mid- March, few have felt the impacts as acutely as small business owners. So one surprising statistic that has emerged amid the pandemic is the up- tick in people starting new businesses in Connecticut. Between March and September, nearly 23,000 businesses were es- tablished in the state, almost a 5% in- crease from the same period last year, according to Secretary of the State's office data analyzed by the Connecticut Data Collabora- tive. "Nationwide and in Con- necticut, new business starts have gone up significantly since the start of the pandemic," said Joe Ercola- no, Connecticut director of the Small Business Development Center. "People are starting businesses either by necessity, … or they see an opportunity." Throughout the pandemic, tens of thousands of Connecticut residents have lost jobs or had hours reduced, and some see going into business for themselves as the only realistic option right now. Angie Ballaro worked as a hair stylist at a Middletown salon, before the owner closed the shop for good. In July she opened her one-woman shop, Visions by Angie, in Rocky Hill. "I didn't have a choice," the first- time business owner said. "It's a little scary." Some others were already well into the process of open- ing when the pandemic hit, and were too far along to hit the pause button. Gina Luari, principal owner of The Place 2 Be restaurant, opened a loca- tion in down- town Hartford last month and plans to open another in West Hartford's Blue Back Square. The business environ- ment has actually presented some opportunities (i.e., people still working in downtown Hartford are ordering in more for lunch), Luari said. But even if she wanted to pull out of expansion plans, it wouldn't be easy. "We're locked into leases," Luari said. "We can say, 'COVID,' and hold up [plans], but we're still going to have to face the repercussions." With a still uncertain environment, here's how a few business owners are handling the challenges of setting up shop during a pandemic: Business: Visions by Angie Owner: Angie Ballaro Type: Hair salon Town: Rocky Hill When the salon she worked at ini- tially shut down early in the pandem- ic, Ballaro, like many, figured it would last a couple weeks to a month. Instead it was permanent — The Iron Scissors Salon and Spa officially closed about two months later, Bal- laro said. Location is important to hair styl- ists. When a stylist moves, their regu- lar customers are more likely to find another salon in the same area rather than drive a distance to continue pa- tronizing a specific hairdresser. A big part of what led Ballaro to go out on her own was a desire to hang onto as many customers as possible by stay- ing close to her old workplace. "I would have stayed exactly where I was [if COVID-19 never occurred]," Ballaro said. "Never in a million years would I have thought I'd be doing this during a pandemic." Ballaro, 38, signed a lease at Sola Studios, 38 Town Line Road in Rocky Hill, which provides rentable space for hair and makeup professionals. She then got the necessary permits and began using the appointment management and scheduling sys- tem GlossGenius to keep her clients and appointments straight. It cost her a couple thousand dollars to set up shop, which required Ballaro to dip into her savings, she said. A few months into running her own business for the first time, Ballaro is making less than the approximately $1,300 per week in commissions she had been earning, and is now respon- sible for overhead costs like rent. Ballaro said she thinks she can build a successful business, but for the moment it's mostly about keep- ing her head above water. And with no financial support beyond revenue from customers, Ballaro is alone with any success or failure. "Right now I'm just trying to get as many butts in the seats as pos- sible," Ballaro said with a chuckle. "I certainly have goals for my business, but I can't even think about that right now." Business: WeHa Brewing & Roasting Owner: Cody McCormack Type: Brewery/taproom/cafe Town: West Hartford In February, Cody McCormack had landed on a West Hartford loca- tion for his planned cafe/taproom, and was just about ready to sign a lease and start a $100,000 buildout. When the pandemic hit, the 29-year- old entrepreneur put that on hold. "We couldn't really proceed with it," McCormack said. "We didn't feel comfortable opening a taproom/cafe at that point." At the time, McCormack had already begun selling coffee online, using a Cottage Food Operator license that al- lows him to sell coffee he makes out of his home. That's currently providing him between $1,500 and $2,000 per month in revenue, McCormack said. More than a half-year into the pandemic, McCormack recently raised $75,000 from investors, after securing $275,000 in funding from other sources. He now plans to sign a lease and build the space in time to open WeHa Brewing & Roasting by early next year. McCormack declined to identify the specific address of the location at which he plans to sign a lease, but said it's in West Hartford's Elmwood neighborhood. When the buildout is complete, the space will include a brewery, roastery and taproom/cafe, which will be open all day for coffee or espresso drinks, and a rotating selection of beers on-tap for after- A snapshot of small businesses in CT CT is ranked No. 25 in the U.S. in terms of the number of small business employees out of total employees. Small business employment: 745,085 (48.5% of all employees) Small businesses in the state: 350,376 (99.4% of all businesses) Average startup early job creation: 3.78 (#43 highest of all states) Self-employed minorities: 43,867 (#25 highest of all states) Startup one-year survival rate: 69.4% Source: UpCounsel Entrepreneurial Itch More CT residents are launching startups during the pandemic. Here's why. Angie Ballaro opened her own solo Rocky Hill hair salon, after the one she worked at closed amid the COVID-19 pandemic. HBJ PHOTO | SEAN TEEHAN

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