MENTOR, Ohio — Governor Mike DeWine has not ordered businesses to close, yet some in Northeast Ohio are now choosing to shut down anyway due to the spike in the latest COVID-19 numbers across the state.
“It was a big decision,” said Jennifer Pealer, who owns Jenniffer & Co. in Mentor. “But I have to hold those standards so high, it was something we had to do.”
Pealer said that COVID touched her life, that it is very serious, and it is her duty to keep others safe.
“I have to protect my staff, I have to protect my family, I have to protect my business,” she said. “We had to take precautions.”
This week, she informed roughly 60 employees, who in turn, canceled or rescheduled more than 200 appointments.
Pealer said the response to her decision has been overwhelmingly positive.
“We want to be here for the holidays,” she stressed. “We want to be good.”
Others do too.
Spuddy’s Tavern in Mentor-on-the-Lake recently announced on Facebook that they will be closing until further notice due to COVID-19.
Brendan Ring, who owns Nighttown in Cleveland Heights, confirmed to 3News that he will temporarily shut down following brunch on Sunday, November 22nd, even if he is able to stay open.
Thanksgiving plans there are off.
Samantha Probst owns Little Babet in Chagrin Falls and is scrambling to be ready for whatever comes next.
She has moved sales online and will personally deliver items to shoppers so they can avoid going inside her store.
“Those people who are proactive I think are the ones who are surviving right now, and it’s a lot of work and obviously very stressful,” she said.
Probst says it has also made her a stronger business owner.
Next week, Governor DeWine will decide whether to close certain businesses to try and avoid the spread of coronavirus.