The global economy is recovering—but don’t tell that to small businesses. Faced with inflation, a labor shortage and supply chain snafus, small business owners have become increasingly pessimistic about the post-pandemic future, explains Goldman Sachs’ Joe Wall of the Office of Government Affairs. On a new episode of Exchanges at Goldman Sachs, Wall shares the results of a recent 10,000 Small Businesses Voicessurvey, noting that only 31% of small business are “very confident” that they would be able to access capital if they needed to and 44% have less than three months of cash reserves. “The reality is [that] more relief might be needed just given where things are today,” Wall says. Khari Parker, co-owner of Connie’s Chicken & Waffles in Maryland, tells host Allison Nathan he’s particularly worried about a slowdown in sales heading into winter. “We’re trying to do as much as we can right now by finding efficiencies within the business and setting more aside,” Parker says. Other business owners say they are overwhelmed. “We’re used to being able to pivot and kind of adapt to different things. But now it’s like, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m only on one toe because I’m trying to balance everything on my hands and legs,’” says Ruby Bugarin, co-owner of Margaritas and Pepe’s Mexican Restaurants in the Los Angeles area. And some small businesses think the outlook ahead may not be so rosy. Rosemary Swierk, president of Direct Steel and Construction in Crystal Lake, Illinois, notes: “We’re hearing projections that [supply chain delays are] going to stay another 12 months and that’s going to have a major detrimental impact on small businesses.”
Listen to Podcast – https://youtu.be/UGdgoLuOCAk
Courtesy of Goldman Sachs