Half of the independent Canadian restaurants recently surveyed say that they are unlikely to survive the current crisis. This is bad news for small business owners in the sector, as well as related lenders, employees, landlords, economic growth and tax collection.
A similar trend is evident in the American data and surveys as shown in the chart below courtesy of Yelp. Forty-one percent of business closures in the household service and retail space since March 1 have been noted as permanent, led by 53% of restaurants.
But there is also a positive side to this