The numbers are out, and they are getting worse each day. Experts foresee many companies both large and small are succumbing to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. A widely used method of predicting business failures, estimated that this year will easily set a record for so-called mega bankruptcies. The number of companies expected to file for bankruptcy is expected to break the record set the year after the 2008 economic crisis as reported by the NYTimes.
While every small business owner is aware of the impact they are making or attempting to make in their specific areas, few recognize the significant influence they have on the economy. Small and medium-sized businesses make up the backbone of the Canadian economy, with a total of 99.8% of all Canadian businesses being firms with less than 500 employees.
The Plight of Canada’s Business Spirit
Most small business brands are failing to create the positive, emotional experiences that drive customer loyalty. Customers are switching brands because of a poor customer experience. There are several ways the coronavirus pandemic affects the economy, especially on the supply and demand sides.
On the supply side, companies experienced a reduction in the supply of labour. Furthermore, supply chains are interrupted leading to shortages of parts and intermediate goods. On the demand side, a dramatic and sudden loss of demand and revenue severely affected their ability to function and caused severe liquidity shortages.
Consumers experienced loss of income, fear of contagion and heightened uncertainty, which in turn reduced spending and consumption. These effects compounded because workers were laid off and firms were not able to pay their employee’s salaries. These various impacts have affected small and medium sized businesses the worst.
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, many businesses, especially the restaurant operators had mixed feelings about third-party food delivery apps. Most restaurants felt that they were forced to adopt takeout or delivery-only models due to social distancing; the high service fees charged by the delivery apps have put those relationships to the test. In many cases the restaurant industry survives on very thin profit margins. Now during the COVID-19 pandemic approximately 95% restaurant sales are going online. With third-party delivery partners taking 30% of the profits as commission, many restaurants were forced to close down since they could not make ends meet.
What is a Brand to do?
A brand is to determine a sustainable and innovative solution, like white labelling, which will focus more on its home brand and bring back the lost customer loyalty and good experience. For example, a company like ZeMaas which does white labelling, ZeMaas will reduce monopoly impact since it is accessible to all businesses and can take every stakeholder at a time.
Let us explore each solution that ZeMaas provides to different stakeholders. For delivery seekers, ZeMaas offers easy to integrate business delivery apps that are sure to solve the problems like hiring a third-party delivery vendor and giving away a majority profit stake to them. With ZeMaas your business will yield more profits with an on-demand delivery model.
For fleet owners who have already seen the struggle and are barely treading water, ZeMaas offers applications that will help them optimise their existing fleet more efficiently in not just ridership, but the upcoming delivery business of the market needs and trends. For Government and Policy Makers, who are unable to find a reliable method to take over and look for ways to survive, they can not only remove losses, but yield profits with delivery and mobility solutions for industry governance from ZeMaas. We at ZeMaas understand the problem is composed of 3 major impacts and this is what we can do to solve it.
ZeMaas provides an ordering system that manages fleets, optimises drivers and connects with more businesses directly. Governments, future operators, and other stakeholders will have the mobility and logistics model help build and add more clients openly supporting small and medium businesses rather than one dominant company taking over the market.
Is the future going to be sustainable with such systems? The answer lies with the current and proposed solution which is enabled to sustain economic growth even in the upcoming future, where a world of whole new technology would be available. ZeMaas has already started paving the way for AV. With AV everyone is a fleet owner, and everyone can generate revenue and to have this we provide people with options, and matching service providers (between supply and demand), improve safety and quality of service, efficiency and productivity.
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