Many entrepreneurs have reported lagging sales and frustrations as the coronavirus has halted the economies of countries all over the world. But not all businesses are seeing sales fall. In fact, some businesses have said they’ve seen interest rise as the emergency has spread. Check out the following five businesses that are in this category.
Pediatric Teletherapy
Everyone is stressed during these times, but it’s difficult to get the mental health resources necessary when social distancing is a top priority. New York’s Enable My Child has seen “massive demand” for its technology during the past two weeks, founder Syed Mohammed told Crunchbase . The firm’s technology uses artificial intelligence to offer pediatric mental health, speech and occupational/physical therapy for early intervention programs.
The company is working with states, schools and counties to provide its services, and has also been contacted by private clinicians to help provide remote therapy options. The company brought in over $1 million in venture funding last August, and logged a year-over-year revenue growth of 300 percent in 2019, Crunchbase reports .
Mobile Order/Delivery Firms
Seattle is the epicenter of the US’ coffee industry and home to category stalwart Starbucks, but it’s also where tech business Joe Coffee is based. The company makes a mobile ordering/rewards app that local coffee shops can utilize so they can be more competitive against chain coffee firms. The startup has been “absolutely swamped” recently, CEO Nick Martin told GeekWire. The reason? Local shops are trying to find ways to provide social distancing options while still staying in business, and the company’s technology allows them to do so.
The same is true of businesses like Domino’s, DoorDash, Amazon and Instacart, which deliver foods, groceries and other items that people need but can’t get due to social distancing. These are among the brands that are working to bring on more employees during the crisis, according to The Hill .
Medical Marijuana
Medical marijuana sales rose by over 20 percent during the week of March 16, hitting a record high, according to analysts. Dispensaries in certain states are considered “essential businesses,” but customers who feared they may not have access to cannabis made their way to dispensaries to stock up in case closures might be looming, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
Not only are more customers visiting these venues, but they are buying more at a time, according to one dispensary owner in Washington, D.C. Such stores are ensuring that customers take social distancing measures, limiting the number of people allowed in a dispensary at any given time, Washingtonian reports.
Grocery Products Like Fresh Meat, Sanitizer
As consumers flocked to grocery stores, meat department sales rose by nearly 77 percent during the week ending March 15, data from IRI indicate. Sales for beef rose by $376 million and sales of chicken went up by $183 million, Agweb reports.
Sales of turkey logged the highest growth, up over 96 percent, while fresh pork sales were up over 89 percent, IRI noted. Much of that was attributed to Americans “panic buying,” or stocking up in anticipation of a lockdown. But those aren’t the only grocery items flying off shelves.
Nielsen data indicate that hand sanitizer sales rose 470 percent the week ending March 7, while aerosol disinfectant sales were up 385 percent and bath/shower wipes rose 180 percent, NPR reports. And that old standby toilet paper saw sales increase by 60 percent during that week, the report notes.
Self-Defense Materials
The coronavirus emergency has led many people to stock up on self-defense materials, such as ammunition for handguns. Revenue on Ammo.com rose 309 percent between February 23 and March 15, CNN reports. Some states are responsible for bigger shares of that business, such as Delaware, where sales rose 4,529 percent during the three-week period.
Sales of guns are also on the rise as people feel a stronger need to protect themselves. To put it into perspective, consider this: The US Department of Justice performed about 380 background checks daily in 2019. On March 17 alone, that number hit 1,943,according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
