CP Business Owner Thread - News, Advice, Support

[GP_Matt]

I am pretty sure that landlords will be flexible on rent. I know that I will be approaching several over the next week to ask that they be reduced. Two of them are up for renewal in the next few months so those will be easy but others might be tougher conversations.

I think the biggest risk to a lot of us in the B2B realm will be cash flow rather than the drop in revenue. Significantly reduced revenue for a few months is rough but manageable. If business put significant delays on their AP it could have pretty huge ramifications down the line. Especially as you ramp back up and have several months of salary to pay out with no cash coming in.

[gasman]

Nm

[VladtheImpaler]

What happens if a month from now it looks like there is no end in sight? I think we have to seriously think about layoffs at that point. Thoughts?

[gasman]

I have an employee who returned from mat leave recently and only has 365 insurable hours since their return. I am trying to figure out if they are eligible for work sharing since I've had to cut that departments hours in half.

Anyone know if the eligibility for workshare is the same as EI?

[VladtheImpaler]

Is everybody taking advantage of the 10% break on employee salaries? It is in effect as of the 18th, so should be able to take advantage for the next payroll.

[Bownesian]

There's been very little help from the federal government for us so far (petroleum exploration services).

- The tax postponement doesn't help because our Year End is September 30 so last year's taxes are already paid
- We can't afford to get a $100K loan from BDC (no matter how easy - and it's not - they want details on every shareholder in the company) just to pay the landlords for a suite we aren't using or for workers who have nothing to do. We're already in debt, and the BDC will want priority over that.
- The 10% wage subsidy is far from enough. It is easy to take - just reduce your April 15 payroll tax remittances by 10% of gross salary (up to the max), track that subsidy as business income, and keep a spreadsheet saying how you didn't pay, but Business has dropped 90%, not 10%

Really, what I'm hearing is that the government is telling us to lay everyone off. That seems to be the only helpful program right now. We terminated 1/3 of our workers last week, and the plan now is for the remainder to go on a 60% reduction in hours through the work-share EI program.

The trouble as I see it is that we are pretty sophisticated when it comes to interacting with banks and government bureaucracy, but few mom and pop restaurant owners will be. I shudder to think what the +15 businesses are going to look like when this is over.

[chedder]

Had a nice surprise this morning. Voicemail from landlord saying he was suspending the april rent payment on one of my locations. Not sure what suspending actually means so I'll have to call him but nice gesture that I wasn't even requesting.

[Bownesian]

I contacted my landlord (Yale Properties) and asked to defer rent for a period and perhaps to add it and some extra at our current (high) rate to the back end of the lease. They replied that they expect us to honor all our lease obligations.

This has helped us with the idea moving to a virtual office when our lease is up (assuming the company survives and we don't just do the midnight run for the computers and files and leave without paying). We were already pretty capable working remotely, but this has reinforced the idea that we can do work from home and we don't need a physical downtown suite. I can meet clients in their offices or by video conference going forward, or rent one of those flexible boardroom spaces by the hour if needed.

I'm guessing this accelerates the hollowing out of downtown as companies like mine figure out that nobody needs to pay those high rates and everyone can make do with less space (or none at all).

[spetch]

Not really sure if this is helpful yet or not but RBC offered to temporarily increase my operating loan 10%. Probably just going to do it as a bit of a safety net. Thank goodness my overhead is low, but the timing of this slowdown couldn’t be worse. All my spring items had already arrived or in transit so holding orders wasn’t an option.

[Strange Brew]

Originally Posted by VladtheImpaler

What happens if a month from now it looks like there is no end in sight? I think we have to seriously think about layoffs at that point. Thoughts?

I'd like to see a series of steps before layoffs.

Furloughs or salary reductions before outright terminations as finding a job will be so difficult.

[mikephoen]

Holy crap I'm sick of answering emails asking me when something is coming out. No-one knows dude! I don't have secret info about when the pandemic will be over and when things will start shipping again.

[troutman]

Maybe we should all post what services we can still offer in the circumstances, and how those services can be delivered in a safe way? We are getting many questions about that. Some legal practice areas are in limbo, and others are "essential" and can continue.

[ben voyonsdonc]

Here are some updated details on business job subsidies through the federal government: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/tru...orts-1.5514558

[Johnny Makarov]

Originally Posted by mikephoen

Holy crap I'm sick of answering emails asking me when something is coming out. No-one knows dude! I don't have secret info about when the pandemic will be over and when things will start shipping again.

Make up a fake date like the Calgary Comic Expo. They just re-scheduled for July 19-21. A week after stampede Not gonna happen.

[VladtheImpaler]

There are also interest-free loans of up to $40k via banks that the Fed will guarantee, and apparently 1/4 will be forgiven if you repay by end of 2022.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by VladtheImpaler

There are also interest-free loans of up to $40k via banks that the Fed will guarantee, and apparently 1/4 will be forgiven if you repay by end of 2022.

The rules surrounding these will be interesting to see.

[RyZ]

I am part owner of a small company although I dont handle much of the day to day "owner" responsibilities. I do the operations management and let one of the other guys play the Presidents role. I am at home right now in quarantine after being tested for COVID late last week, but the shop is humming along at close to full capacity.

I understand our lawyer has looked into whether or not we might be considered an essential service or not and we are told we will likely be able to stay open as we produce food packaging and printing/labeling systems for many trucking companies, so we might have got lucky on this one.

I feel for everyone with a small business in limbo right now and hope we can all get out of this with as small an economic hit as possible.

[Slava]

Originally Posted by VladtheImpaler

There are also interest-free loans of up to $40k via banks that the Fed will guarantee, and apparently 1/4 will be forgiven if you repay by end of 2022.

Whoa, so I can borrow $40k, pay no interest and pay back $30k in a little under 2 years? I'm going to check this out.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Slava

Whoa, so I can borrow $40k, pay no interest and pay back $30k in a little under 2 years? I'm going to check this out.

Please report back, because this could really help.

[Slava]

Originally Posted by Locke

Please report back, because this could really help.

You have to have paid between $50k and $1m in total payroll in 2019. Other than that I don't see a lot of information or stipulations though.