OSHKOSH (NBC 26) -- If the statewide shutdown due to coronavirus lasts for more than three months, some Wisconsin businesses say they may not survive, according to a new survey.
Thirty-five percent of Wisconsin businesses responding to a University of Wisconsin Oshkosh statewide survey will be forced to close if current conditions persist for more than three months.
Governor Tony Evers recently extended a stay-at-home order for the entire state to May 26. Many businesses previously had to close due to the order.
The survey, which yielded nearly 2,550 responses from companies in 63 of the state’s 72 counties, covers the period April 1-10, said Jeffrey Sachse, director of UWO’s Center for Customized Research and Services.
According to a news release from UWO, results also showed 8,795 jobs lost in the earliest days of Wisconsin’s safer-at-home order, along with losses of $95 million in inventory, $126 million in income, $26.6 million in lost wages and productivity income and nearly $404 million in other impacts.
Firms reported seeing a sharp reduction in productivity due to a shift to working from home, with most reporting a 25 to 50 percent decrease, the UWO news release says.
NBC 26 talked with Copper State Brewing Co. about what it has been experiencing. Owner and brewer Jonathan Martens said they are doing take out orders Tuesday through Saturday. He said they've had to get creative, but that their faithful customers have been continuing to support them week after week. Martens added three months of this may be difficult for a lot of people. He said Copper State Brewing Co. had a successful nine months prior to all this, so they're doing alright.
"We're doing okay, but if it goes much longer than three months, like I said, we'll be incurring new debt and things like that to just stay afloat and keep the doors open so we're here at the other side of this," added Martens.
He added that they anticipate being able to make it through this.
More information about the data from the survey can be found here.
