Peter Leonard poses for a photo in his shop's new walk-up window on Thursday, March 19, 2020.
Rachel McDevitt / WITF
Harrisburg businesses look for new ways to serve community during statewide shutdown order
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Rachel McDevitt/StateImpact Pennsylvania
Rachel McDevitt / WITF
Peter Leonard poses for a photo in his shop's new walk-up window on Thursday, March 19, 2020.
(Harrisburg) — Sometimes when a door closes, a window opens.
That’s the case at Little Amps Coffee Roasters. A few days after Gov. Tom Wolf asked all non-essential businesses statewide to close, and for restaurants to limit service to take-out, Little Amps owner Peter Leonard said he decided to stop in-store sales and open the walk-up window at his Green Street shop.
“It was luck, honestly,” he said. “We had a window and it was in a convenient location to serve out of.”
Wolf has since announced enforcement efforts behind his latest order to close all businesses that aren’t life-sustaining, to help slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Little Amps’s window is the last hold-out of the chain’s three locations in the city. They aren’t selling hot drinks, but they do have cold brew and bags of coffee for people to make at home.
Leonard said it’s a way to offer some goods while respecting social distance.
“We don’t want to be luring people out into the world if we don’t have to,” he said. “A cappuccino would be amazing every day but it’s not essential.”
A bottle of hand sanitizer and a jar labeled “tips for unemployed baristas” sit on the window sill.
Most of Leonard’s staff of 19 are laid off while operations are limited. Tips and a bonus from online sales could help them out until they can start collecting unemployment.
Online purchases are up. Leonard said sales over the first three days of this week equaled about half of February’s totals.
But it’s hard to say if that pace is sustainable. Little Amps sends a lot of coffee wholesale to other cafes, which are seeing their own slumps in business because of the coronavirus crisis.
Business owners say they are figuring things out day-by-day, sometimes hour-by-hour.
Rachel McDevitt / WITF
Jennie O’Neill hangs a sign announcing take-out service only at Knead Slice Shop in Harrisburg on Thursday, March 19, 2020.
Signs hanging in the windows of Knead Slice Shop announce they’re serving take-out only.
Employees will also run food out to a person’s car if they don’t want to come into the shop. Knead is pushing online orders to minimize contact and keep things efficient.
The shop’s red metal chairs and stools are stacked up and pushed against the wall, making a path that ushers customers to the counter to pick up their pizza and back out the door.
Owner Jennie O’Neill said she’s lucky to have a business that can run on carry-out.
She’s noticed a shift, but not necessarily a drop-off, in sales since more people started working from home. She said there’s not as much of a lunch rush, but there are more orders for whole pies in the evening.
O’Neill has been watching the news and started planning for a coronavirus situation about a month ago — around the same time Knead celebrated its grand opening on 3rd Street.
She had to cut two part-time workers, but is able to keep most of Knead’s dozen employees working, with extra precautions. She said employees use gloves and frequently wash their hands and clean surfaces.
“We do this in the restaurant industry anyway,” O’Neill said. “We clean constantly.”
Through the uncertainty, she added they’ve found a lot of support from the community.
“People just telling us to hang in there,” she said “So, it’s been lovely in that way.”
Rachel McDevitt / WITF
Tables and chairs in Knead Slice Shop are pushed up against the walls on Thursday, March 19, 2020. Governor Tom Wolf has limited restaurants statewide to take-out service only to help slow the spread of COVID-19.
Businesses that can’t offer a carryout service, like the Midtown Cinema, are looking for new ways to connect with people.
The theater is closed until at least the end of March.
“It was kind of a no-brainer,” said Stuart Landon, the cinema’s community engagement director.
He said the theater is a safe space for creative thought and gathering, but it can’t serve that purpose during the outbreak.
Landon said they’re excited to explore an “online movie club.” People can watch a movie at home, then join a video call for a conversation about the film.
He’s encouraging people to support businesses and artistic outlets now with donations and gift card purchases, so those places will be there for the community once restrictions on businesses are lifted.
“We’re all going to have a lot of entertainment to catch up on when we come out on the other side of this,” he said.
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