Alex Willen of San Diego was preparing to
open a dog boarding business when the
pandemic hit; he was about to sign papers for
a Small Business Administration loan to cover
construction costs when his bank said it was
putting new business loans on hold. Willen
sensed the virus outbreak wouldn’t end quickly,
which meant dog owners wouldn’t be traveling
and many would keep working at home,
eliminating the need for his services.
By May, the loan money was available, but
Willen decided to give up rather than open the
business and not have revenue for months,
maybe longer.
“It was looking like COVID was not going away
by November or December, and those are huge
months for dog boarding,” says Willen.
Willen soon decided to restart a business he’d
shelved in favor of boarding: dog treats. Willen
didn’t have to start at square one because he
had already done some preliminary marketing
and package design for the business.
Willen bakes for his two dogs, Cooper and Maple
— which gave him the idea for Cooper’s Treats.
He sells the treats on his website and Amazon.
“It’s looking like a real business,” he says.
Kathryn Valentine closed her consulting
business last summer because she had lost her
child-care options. Valentine’s nanny quit to take
care of her own children, and daycare centers
were closed. With a baby and a toddler, the
Atlanta-based mother couldn’t work the 9-to-5
schedule followed by the apparel companies
that were her clients. She had to come up with
another line of work — and quickly.