Special Report: 44% Of Small Biz Owners Are Concerned Omicron Will Hurt Their Recovery

TREND TRACKER | DATA INSIGHTS | LATEST VARIANT -- Boston, MA, December 8, 2021: Alignable's Omicron Pulse Poll shows that 44% of small business owners are worried that the latest COVID variant will hurt their  recoveries. The poll was conducted among 5,632 small business owners over the past few days -- from 12/4/21 to 12/7/21.

This news comes as COVID rates and hospitalizations are climbing again across the U.S. and Canada, largely due to the Delta variant, as Omicron's presence also grows across North America.

Looking closely at the data for the U.S. and for Canada, while 44% of U.S.-based small businesses polled fear Omicron's potential to impede their recoveries, Canadians are even more alarmed, as the majority (53%) are worried about what Omicron could mean for their livelihoods.

And they aren't alone. This story intensifies when you examine more results based on industries and demographics, as well as states and provinces. 

Which Industries Are Most Nervous?

Small business owners from high-touch, low-tech sectors where much of the business occurs in person topped the list of those who fear the Omicron threat the most. 

This chart tells quite a story, and isn't surprising, given what many small business industries including travel/lodging, personal services like massage therapy, restaurants, retailers, and event management have already suffered greatly during earlier COVID phases. 

Travel and lodging topped the list as an astounding 70% of these professionals said they're worried about Omicron hurting their businesses, which have struggled with several ups and downs over the past six to nine months. 

Not surprisingly, 69% of restaurant owners said they're concerned about Omicron, along with 68% of massage therapists, 67% of event planners, 58% of retailers, and 56% of gym owners/fitness experts.

Other categories where the majority of small business owners expressed fears about Omicron's effects included automotive (56% of dealers and repair shop owners), manufacturing (52%), and transportation (also 52%). And nearly half of beauty salon and barber shop owners surveyed (49%) also shared their concerns during this week's poll.

69% of Minority-Owned Businesses Are Worried, Too!

Other groups that have had an extraordinarily difficult time with the pandemic include minorities and women who own small businesses. 

And this poll shows they're expressing many worries about it setting them back as they're still trying to make more strides to recover.

As you can see below, more than 2 out of 3 minorities (69%) taking Alignable's Omicron Pulse Poll fear the potential damage Omicron can have on their businesses. And the same can be said for 52% of women-owned businesses, as well. 

Veteran-owned businesses usually show more resilience than many others, and that can be seen again in this chart where only 40% say they have concerns about Omicron. However, 40% is still a very significant percentage and it might increase as Omicron continues to make its presence known across the U.S. and Canada. 

How's Are Omicron Concerns Reflected Across Geos? 

Looking at states first, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, and Michigan show that the majority of their small business owners are fearful about what Omicron could bring. 

As you can see in this chart, 64% of Massachusetts-based small business owners worry that Omicron could impede their recovery. That's the highest rate reported across the country, and in fact, North America. And New York's SMBs aren't far behind at 60%. 

Other states with more than 50% of their SMBs reporting Omicron fears are New Jersey (57%) and Michigan (54%). It's interesting to note that our popular Rent Poll often places New York and Michigan at the top of the list of states with the most rampant rent delinquency among small business owners during the pandemic.

Some 47% or more of the small businesses in Florida (49%), Illinois  (49%), Pennsylvania (48%) and California (47%) are also worried about this newest variant.

Shifting to Canadian findings, the majority of small business owners polled from Ontario (58%) and British Columbia (53%), have expressed Omicron concerns. 

Meanwhile, only 36% of Alberta's business owners are worried about the variant. 

Despite Concerns By Many, 43% Say They Aren't Worried

While 44% of U.S.-based small business owners expressed concerns about the impact Omicron could have, 10% said they still don't know enough about it to determine if it's a threat or not, 3% said it could improve their business, and 43% say they're not worried about it. 

In comments supporting these results, many who are not concerned have all-digital businesses, or they say they're "sick and tired of worrying about COVID."  

Many of these respondents also expressed that they don't want to take the COVID vaccines, or wear masks. 

Worried Or Not, How Are You Preparing For Omicron?

When we asked what small business owners are doing to prepare for Omicron, 40% said they are increasing basic safety procedures, including wearing masks and urging people to stay six feet apart again.  Other popular answers for this multiple-reply question were:

• 24% said they're not doing anything different
• 23% said they're getting a booster shot
• 21% said they're investing more in marketing their businesses.

For more details about statistics for other states and provinces, or additional industries, please contact me at chuck@alignable.com. To see past surveys, go to the Alignable Research Center.

ABOUT THE ALIGNABLE RESEARCH CENTER 

Alignable is the largest online referral network for small businesses with over 6.5 million members across North America. 

We established our research center in early March 2020, to track and report the impact of the Coronavirus on small businesses, and to monitor recovery efforts, informing the media, policymakers, and our members.