Business Recovery in the time of the Pandemic (September Newsletter)
/Well it's time to stipulate a few things: If you do not believe, masks, social distancing and hand washing are fundamental to accelerating our recovery, read no further!
Ok, now that is out of the way, the same public health fundamentals remain in place; responsible behavior is both personal and a vital component of our business recovery. And it is the job of the elected officials to try to make policy to keep us safe. What an awesome and heavy responsibility. As a citizen, I feel the necessity to follow our elected officials directives.
But I, maybe you too, have that odd San Diego personality trait… the one with the angel of compliance on one shoulder and the devil of defiance on the other. It's a tug of war and in this pandemic environment, patience can be the tiebreaker. Patience is wearing thin.
While a majority of our SDSI member businesses are doing well, as San Diegans have become even more active and outdoor oriented, overall, it’s not good for the San Diego events landscape. No fans to see the “Slam” Diego Padres celebrate the playoffs, no college ball, no live events, no youth sports. In fact, over 60,000 employees’ jobs are at risk, just in those venues. And we are seeing youth sports teams & events leaving San Diego - taking their matches and business to other states that are more open.
On a Zoom panel discussion today, we discussed the current state of Events in San Diego. Execs from the events business and sector shared some very interesting and somewhat promising data about the future. Mitch Thrower, the Founder of Events.com shared a recent McKinsey study showing three scenarios for recovery, the middle on forecasting a return to business in Q3 and Q4, 2021. And among the panelists there was a belief that when business comes back, it will be different and importantly, at scale. Our businesses will be among the first to feel the recovery.
San Diego is an aspirational place in every way, including our efforts to comply, respect science and support public leadership. At the same time, I believe we are all ready to get back to work in a safe way. Let’s use our collective impatience to tell our story to our elected leaders. San Diego is ready. Play Ball!
-bob
