Startups Work To Pivot To Pickup And Delivery Amid Coronavirus Pandemic

CHICAGO (CBS) -- The coronavirus pandemic is dealing a heavy blow to startups and entrepreneurs trying to get their ideas off the ground.

Some are completely changing their game plans to fit the needs of a pandemic. On Tuesday morning, CBS 2's Tim McNicholas showed us some of the unique ways some startups are restarting.

At the Collective Lab in Beverly, six small businesses share one roof. Florence Hardy runs the retail space, where companies just getting started can showcase their products, test their ideas, and build a customer base.

Such a process is much tougher in a pandemic.

"I tried to stay open as long as we could, until we couldn't," Hardy said.

So for the Collective Lab, it was back to the lab again. They pivoted their approach, and they're now focused on curbside pickup and delivery for their products.

"A lot of our businesses are still employed someplace else, so that was good," Hardy said, "but we still wanted them to know what it was like to pivot your business."

But there's just one thing – setting up an online pickup and delivery platform is easier said than done. So Hardy enlisted the help of Patrice Darby Neely and her startup.

"We help small businesses transition to curbside pickup and delivery," Darby Neely said.

And she knows a thing or two about pivoting herself. Her company, GoLogic, used to be called GoNanny and was focused on using an online platform to connect busy parents with safe options to get their kids to and from daycare.

But when daycares shut down, revenue dropped to zero.

"We have an incredible team. We have robust technology. And I asked myself the question, who needs this most?" Darby Neely said. "First thing I landed on was the restaurant industry."

She said so far, it has been a success, and now they are eyeing other industries as well. The plan is to have pickup and delivery running in early June for more than 30 businesses, including the Collective Lab.

And it could be a valuable option if people are still hesitant or unable to shop in person.

CBS 2 is committing to Working For Chicago, connecting you every day with the information you or a loved one might need about the jobs market, and helping you remove roadblocks to getting back to work.

We'll keep uncovering information every day to help this community get back to work, until the job crisis passes. CBS 2 has several helpful items right here on our website, including a look at specific companies that are hiring, and information from the state about the best way to get through to file for unemployment benefits in the meantime.

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