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Saving Main Street
Book

Saving Main Street

Small Business in the Time of COVID-19

Gary Rivlin
Harper, 2022

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Editorial Rating

9

Qualities

  • Eye Opening
  • Concrete Examples
  • Eloquent

Recommendation

With profound eloquence and humanity, Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Gary Rivlin exposes the challenges faced by small businesses before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, including those created by consumer trends and government policies. He profiles the financial risks faced by three micro-enterprises in Pennsylvania – a restaurant, a hair salon and a gift shop. Rivlin grippingly explores contradictions in government policy, racial and class fissures, and the tremendous impact “mom-and-pop” shops have on US society and the economy. He celebrates their entrepreneurial grit and exposes the government’s inconsistent efforts to contain the economic impacts of the pandemic.

Take-Aways

  • Seeking new work opportunities, immigrants flocked to Pennsylvania’s resurgent economy in the 2000s.
  • Even before COVID-19, small businesses faced fierce competition from big box stores and national chains, stretching their scant financial resources.
  • Pennsylvania’s governor ordered all “non-essential” businesses to close during COVID-19; this disproportionally hurt small enterprises.

About the Author

Pulitzer Prize and Gerald Loeb Award–winning journalist Gary Rivlin has reported for The New York Times, Newsweek and Fortune.

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