ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - Some small businesses in Anchorage say they are profiting by reaching out online to customers they will not likely see during the coronavirus pandemic.
Business have adapted to health restrictions that have slowed or ended in-person sales by displaying inventory on new or revamped websites, Alaska Public Media reported last Friday.
Janet Gregory, who owns Over the Rainbow Toys, said the store is in the midst of its busiest period of the year. The business normally makes about 30% of the year’s sales during the last six weeks of the year.
In 2020, online sales have become a huge part of the business, she said.
“We’ve always had a modest website that I always regarded as a place to see what kind of store we were, what kind of product we sold,” Gregory said. “But it really wasn’t geared to drive website sales.”
The store has received 10 times the normal volume of web orders this season, Gregory said.
Kimberly McCourtney, vice president of Alaska Mill & Feed, said moving the company’s diverse inventory online has been a big job.
“From a data perspective, it’s a daunting and massive project,” McCourtney said.
Despite the difficulty, the business has experienced a boom in online sales and now offers curbside pickup and delivery and video chats between customers and employees, with plans for an enhanced website in the new year, McCourtney said.
Tyler Yates oversees online sales at the Hoarding Marmot, an outdoor consignment store that launched a new online shop a few months ago.
“We started working on it as soon as businesses locked down,” Yates said. “And it just took a little bit to get our old computer system to work with a new resale environment, new website environment.”
The store has experienced a sales increase since the updated website launched. The business has focused on more expensive items to justify the time needed to photograph merchandise and produce online descriptions, Yates said.
“Selling, you know, a sticker, for 50 cents isn’t always worth it,” Yates said. “But selling a pair of skis for $300, that works for us.”
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some - especially older adults and people with existing health problems - it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.
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