Memphis, Tenn. (May 11, 2020)- The Greater Memphis Chamber today released the latest numbers from its ongoing COVID-19 Greater Memphis Business Impact Survey.
Based on current responses from nearly 600 area business owners in the Greater Memphis region as of April 27, the Chamber estimates the following impacts on Memphis area businesses as a direct result of COVID-19:
Business Impact
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65% indicated business was down more than 11% compared to February-April 2019.
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27% indicated impact to be greater than 51% from this time last year.
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35% indicated that business was relatively unchanged or down less than 10% from this time period last year.
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70% of respondents indicated no workforce layoffs.
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77% of respondents have indicated that layoffs have been less than 10 employees.
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81% have applied for federal business support programs.
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40% of respondents indicated that they have been approved by either the SBA Economic Disaster Loan or the Payroll Protection Program.
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41% indicate that they have applied but have not yet been approved for these programs.
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17% of respondents did not apply for either program.
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Revenue/Cashflow represented the most pressing concern for area businesses, capturing 24%. This was followed by employee well-being at 19% and payroll expense at 16%.
Survey Notes:
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Short-term working capital is the #1 business need right now.
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55% of survey respondents indicated that they were women or minority owned.
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From March 19 to March 30, 50% indicated that some employees were working remotely compared to nearly 60% from results through March 31 to April 27.
About the COVID-19 Greater Memphis Business Impact Survey
The Chamber is working in partnership with the Memphis and Shelby County COVID-19 Task Force to estimate the impact and needs of the local business community in an effort to gather critical data to inform recovery programs and recommendations to reignite the local economy after the public health crisis ends. The first round of the survey was distributed to Chamber member businesses on March 19 (see results here). Phase two was opened to general businesses on March 23 (see results here). Phase three launched on March 27 (see results here).
In addition to the survey, the Chamber team members are making phone calls to local business owners to understand their immediate and near-term needs.
For more information, visit www.memphischamber.com.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Apryl Childs-Potter
Chief Marketing Officer
Greater Memphis Chamber
apotter@memphischamber.com
