Despite a difficult year, many small businesses were forced to reflect and update their business models to stay afloat. Their willingness and adaptability helped them to withstand the odds, and we are now seeing many businesses thrive as a result.
In support of Small Business Month, Intuit QuickBooks Canada is sharing the results of a #SmallBizLessons pulse-check survey, capturing key findings from 583 small business owners across the product and service industries in Canada, with the goal of better understanding the top pain points and lessons learned over the past 18 months.
To succeed during one of the most difficult years they’ve ever faced, many small businesses were unable to stick to the original plans they set out to achieve at the start of 2020. Through our survey, results showed that nearly 1 in 4 (23%) Canadian small businesses say the pandemic forced them to pivot to become stronger than before.
We sat down with Andrea Robertson from Rain City Games to hear more about how the pandemic forced a shift in the way they run their business. Andrea and her partner Channing temporarily closed the doors to the two locations of Rain City Games in March of 2020. When faced with the question “what now?” they immediately shifted their energy to their website. Their revenue traditionally came from sales of board games and puzzles available at their brick-and-mortar locations in Vancouver and New Westminster. Products were not set up to be purchased online , but they knew that had to change. Two days later, Rain City Games’ e-commerce shop was open and the team evolved their in-store game nights to virtual events.
Through Rain City Games’ shift to e-commerce, the company was able to expand their shipping to serve even more customers across Canada in a matter of months.
We asked Andrea what she would consider her biggest #SmallBizLesson over the past 18 months.
“I’ve struggled with all the uncertainty. We’re planners. We play board games. We love strategy and knowing what our next move will be,” said Andrea. “Without the constant mindset to innovate and evolve as a business owner, we wouldn’t have made it. The truth is, you need to keep going – get creative, stay relevant and roll with the punches as the world continues to adapt.”
