The PPP: One Small Business Owner’s Journey (spoiler: it isn’t over)
A few weeks ago I led a workshop on resources available to entrepreneurs and small businesses during this time of crisis. One of the programs that I talked about and that, not surprisingly, got a lot of interest from the workshop attendees, was the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). The PPP is, in theory, a really useful resource for any small business, sole proprietor or non-profit. It allows organizations to get a forgivable loan for 8 weeks of payroll. There are a bunch of stipulations, which I won’t go into detail about here, but even with the stipulations the program is still incredibly helpful.
That is, if anyone could actually get the money.
The PPP went live on Friday, April 3. I tried to apply for Verdi, but wasn’t able to get through on Chase’s website (phone lines were backed up by hours) until Tuesday, April 7. Once I got into the site it was relatively easy. I already had all of the documentation I needed to apply because my payroll system, Gusto, made getting the reports really easy. I also already bank with Chase so I didn’t have to establish a new relationship with them. I assumed that even with the intense demand for the program, that I must have been among the first to successfully submit a completed application and therefore would certainly see the money show up in my account in a few days or weeks.
Before I go down that rabbit hole, let me make clear why I applied in the first place. Verdi is incredibly lucky in a lot of ways - I run my business virtually already. I work with people all over the country (and in a few other countries -- hey Canada and the U.K.!) and therefore am not limited in who my clients can be. People and organizations need my help right now - perhaps more than ever. However, my client base has always largely been entrepreneurs, freelancers and non-profit executive directors. Almost every single one of my existing clients has faced economic hardship due to the coronavirus and that, inevitably, trickles down to me. I and my company will be fine. I’ve made adjustments that will allow me to both help a greater number of people and bring in revenue -- I’ve changed my pricing structure, I’ve offered another round of the Verdi Money Club before previously planned, and I’m sharing my insights at frequent virtual workshops. These changes will help, but they don’t fix the problem overnight and don’t change the fact that without outside help I would have to forgo payroll for a while in order to responsibly stay afloat.
As I’m sure you’re not surprised, I didn’t get the PPP loan in the first round of $350 billion distributed. I, along with the vast majority of small businesses who applied weren’t fast or savvy enough to get through in time. The PPP was refilled with an additional $350 billion last week and applications went live again yesterday. Since I already applied I should be in the backlog queue and, in theory, receive the loan during this round. I’ll be thrilled if that happens, but, to tell you the truth, I’m not holding my breath.
I considered not writing this post because I was worried it would seem too political, but I decided that my frustration with the federal government’s response in helping small businesses and individuals is not political, it is simply practical. Our politicians - both liberal and conservative - love to talk about how much they care about small businesses. They frequently praise small businesses as the backbone of the US economy. And yet, in a time of immense crisis it is not the small businesses who are being saved. Huge corporations are receiving and will receive massive bailouts to stay afloat. Countless restaurants, corner stores and service providers won’t get the help they need and therefore won’t make it. Money is an immensely powerful tool and it is clear to me that those who have the most power to wield it right now (i.e. the federal government) are choosing to back the organizations that already have enough money and power on their own to make a stink if they’re not taken care of. That is not the way the government is supposed to work. “By the people and for the people” wasn’t meant to disclude individuals and it wasn’t meant to disclude small businesses who aren’t able to work the system like the behemoth corporations.
XOXO
