{"id":2453,"date":"2020-05-13T10:12:23","date_gmt":"2020-05-13T10:12:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/?p=2453"},"modified":"2020-05-13T12:45:46","modified_gmt":"2020-05-13T12:45:46","slug":"tel-aviv-new-york-berlin-three-people-keeping-their-businesses-alive-during-covid-19","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/en\/health-nutrition\/tel-aviv-new-york-berlin-three-people-keeping-their-businesses-alive-during-covid-19\/","title":{"rendered":"Tel Aviv \u2013 New York \u2013 Berlin"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Tel Aviv \u2013 New York \u2013 Berlin\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/EV3yE73e2KQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>As the first and hopefully, only wave of COVID-19 seems to be slowly subsiding in many countries, some governments have begun to loosen restrictions in order to restore a sense of normalcy for the public and spare their economies from any further strain. While New York is still in a state of emergency, Israel and Germany are among the first, after having imposed stringent restrictions on citizen\u2019s movements, to take first steps towards a post-corona reality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While a\nnumber of businesses and public\noffices are officially returning to regular hours of operation, albeit with\nstrict safety measures, the service industry continues to be one of the most impacted\nby the crisis \u2013 bars and clubs remain closed, restaurants and cafes may sell food\nonly as take-out or delivery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With such\nsevere limitations causing daily revenue to drop, many independent business owners\nsee themselves being driven towards financial dilemma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, three restaurant owners from three different countries have each found a way to cope with the current situation that this crisis has dealt them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Merav-Barzilay-of-Meshek-Barzilay-1-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2468\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Merav-Barzilay-of-Meshek-Barzilay-1-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Merav-Barzilay-of-Meshek-Barzilay-1-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Merav-Barzilay-of-Meshek-Barzilay-1-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Merav-Barzilay-of-Meshek-Barzilay-1-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Merav-Barzilay-of-Meshek-Barzilay-1.jpg 1067w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \/><figcaption><em>Merav Barzilay of vegan restaurant Meshek Barzilay<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>Tel Aviv<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For Merav\nBarzilay, who owns the celebrated vegan restaurant <a href=\"https:\/\/www.meshekbarzilay.co.il\/en\/\">Meshek Barzilay<\/a> in the heart of Tel Aviv, the new situation may present a challenge,\nbut nothing that she and her team cannot overcome. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI am a\nvery optimistic person by nature. I believe in my business, my abilities, and\nmy dreams,\u201d Merav stresses. \u201cMany people have raised their eyebrows when I first\nstarted with a vegan restaurant focusing on healthy cuisine. Now we\u2019ve come a\nlong way. We became a strong business.&nbsp;\nThis won\u2019t be easy, but I am not the kind of person who gives up fast,\u201d\nshe adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With\nCOVID-19 incapacitating the better part of the service industry in Israel,\nMeirav is doing everything to remain on track. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe\nrestaurant is basically closed, operations are heavily reduced, and we spend fewer\nhours at the restaurant. But we are doing everything to streamline our activities,\nnot to lose money, and to plan ahead so that we can go full steam ahead once we\nget to fully reopen the restaurant\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While\nwaiting for a government grant to support her business, Merav has to be\ncreative to keep things interesting for her customers. Aside from using\ndelivery service more extensively now, she is spicing up her menu by creating\nnew offers and products. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI even\ncame up with a new delivery idea, which I cannot disclose yet, but I hope it\nwill make some impact.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At the same time, Merav is happy to spend some time with her family and pursue her hobbies. \u201cAlthough this is a tough period, I have more time now to do other wonderful things like spend time with my children and my mother, read books, cook, and garden,\u201d Merav adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Lloyd-of-Jay-Lloyds-Kosher-Deli-3.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2458\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Lloyd-of-Jay-Lloyds-Kosher-Deli-3.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Lloyd-of-Jay-Lloyds-Kosher-Deli-3-300x200.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Lloyd-of-Jay-Lloyds-Kosher-Deli-3-768x512.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption><em>Lloyd of Jay &amp; Lloyds Kosher Deli<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>New York\nCity<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With more\nthan <a href=\"https:\/\/covid19tracker.health.ny.gov\/views\/NYS-COVID19-Tracker\/NYSDOHCOVID-19Tracker-Fatalities?%3Aembed=yes&amp;%3Atoolbar=no&amp;%3Atabs=n\">300,000 confirmed cases and 21,000\ndeaths<\/a>, New York\nCity is by far the hardest-hit place in the world. COVID-19 has paralyzed any\nsense of normalcy in the city, and according to the New York State Department\nof Health, all non-essential businesses will stay closed through <a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.health.ny.gov\/home\">May 15<sup>th<\/sup><\/a>. In Addition, NY State Governor Andrew Cuomo\nhas determined that schools will remain closed for the rest of the <a href=\"https:\/\/health.ny.gov\/\">academic\nyear<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Lloyd\nLederman is a co-owner of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jayandlloydskosherdeli.com\/\">Jay &amp; Lloyds Kosher Deli<\/a> in Brooklyn, New York.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe are one\nof the last \u2018old-time mom-and-pop style shops,\u2019 and I love what I do. I\u2019ve been\ndoing this all my life, ever since I was a kid. I\u2019m a third-generation deli\nguy,\u201d Lloyd says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According\nto Lloyd, since the outbreak, every day has become a struggle, and now more\nthan ever, he feels as though he has to be at the deli all the time in order to\nstay in business. \u201cWhile I am waiting to get my Paycheck Protection Program (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sba.gov\/funding-programs\/loans\/coronavirus-relief-options\/paycheck-protection-program\">PPP<\/a> &#8211; a federal small business loan) approved,\nI\u2019ve joined four delivery apps, and I started to become very active on social\nmedia, which I\u2019ve never done before. Now I post almost every day,\u201d Lloyd says.\n\u201cI am trying to get as much exposure as possible,\u201d he adds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Wearing\nmasks and gloves have become normality, and although regular business days have\nchanged drastically, food can still be sold as take-out, which obviously\nincreases the chances of contracting Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIn my\nbusiness, we work in close proximity to one another, and when you\u2019re dealing\nwith different people, you can never really be sure about your safety. And then\nevery night I come home to my daughters, which is a scary thought,\u201d Lloyd\nemphasizes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While the fear of the virus is ever-present, for Lloyd, not being able to pay his landlord or his staff is just as terrifying a thought. \u201cMy biggest worry is purely to pay my landlord and keep my staff employed. I feel responsible for them,\u201d Lloyd concludes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Alexander-of-called-HeartSpace-Coworking-Coffee-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2454\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Alexander-of-called-HeartSpace-Coworking-Coffee-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Alexander-of-called-HeartSpace-Coworking-Coffee-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Alexander-of-called-HeartSpace-Coworking-Coffee-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Alexander-of-called-HeartSpace-Coworking-Coffee-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Alexander-of-called-HeartSpace-Coworking-Coffee.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption><em>Alexander von Bassenheim, a young business owner of HeartSpace Coworking &amp; Coffee<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>Berlin<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Across the\npond, Alexander von Bassenheim, a young business owner from Berlin, who opened a\ncaf\u00e9 with an integrated co-working space called <a href=\"http:\/\/heartspaceberlin.com\/coworkingcoffee\">HeartSpace Coworking &amp; Coffee<\/a> last year, is facing similar\nproblems. Right from the start, Alexander reacted fast, knowing that he did not\nhave the luxury to just sit back and hope for the best. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWhen we\nheard that caf\u00e9s and restaurants had to close down, we decided right away to\ntry delivery service. We are new and don\u2019t have a lot of savings or options.\nThere wasn\u2019t much that we wouldn\u2019t have tried in order to keep things going,\u201d\nAlex says. \u201cFortunately,\u201d Alex continues, \u201cit worked out, and although it\u2019s not\na lot, delivery is now our main source of income.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Additionally,\nwithin a few days after the first restrictions came into effect, Alexander launched\na successful online funding campaign, which raised more than \u20ac4,000 in a little\nover a week. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe money\nI raised really helped me to buy some time and keep things going,\u201d Alex\nstresses. \u201cAside from that, however, I also received financial support from the\ncity of Berlin and from the federal government, which I am extremely grateful\nfor, especially since the application process was super easy and without a lot\nof bureaucracy,\u201d he adds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According\nto Alex, one of the most significant logistical changes since the outbreak of\nCOVID-19 is the fact that the caf\u00e9\u2019s supply deliveries decreased from every day\nto only once or twice a week. \u201cI do most of the shopping myself now, which only\nmakes sense since I\u2019ve started to sell far less than before,\u201d says Alex. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As of now,\nit is still unclear when restaurants and caf\u00e9s in Germany are allowed to reopen.\nHowever, Alex is optimistic that, as a business that makes most of its money at\nlunchtime through office employees in the vicinity, the caf\u00e9 will see an\nincrease in revenue as soon as most offices reopen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI am just glad that I am able to keep paying my staff and the rent. Things are starting to look up right now, at least in Germany, so I\u2019m just going to keep doing what I can until we get passed this crazy time,\u201d he concludes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>This ZAVIT article was also published in&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/jewishjournal.com\/news\/315675\/tel-aviv-new-york-berlin-three-businesses-staying-alive-covid-19\/\">The Jewish Journal<\/a> on&nbsp;05\/12\/2020.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As the first and hopefully, only wave of COVID-19 seems to be slowly subsiding in many countries, some governments have &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":182,"featured_media":2482,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[13,9],"tags":[],"acf":[],"post-meta-fields":{"_edit_lock":["1589373946:11"],"_edit_last":["11"],"subtitle":["After weeks of grueling lockdowns and desperate searches for exit strategies, many large and mid- sized companies have resumed limited operations. However, small businesses like restaurants, cafes, and bars, that depend heavily on daily revenue have to remain closed, making it even harder for them to survive"],"_subtitle":["field_59d3d36ea7fe1"],"_wpml_media_duplicate":["1"],"_wpml_media_featured":["1"],"_thumbnail_id":["2482"],"_oembed_d2924395207d8058cf4f7748e07cc1e0":["<iframe title=\"Tel Aviv \u2013 New York \u2013 Berlin\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/EV3yE73e2KQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>"],"_oembed_time_d2924395207d8058cf4f7748e07cc1e0":["1589364573"]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2453"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/182"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2453"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2453\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2486,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2453\/revisions\/2486"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2482"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2453"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2453"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2453"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}