STOW, Ohio — The pandemic has been brutal for small business owners across America and that's no different in Stow.
“It’s really been a challenge,” said Heather Ciranna, owner of Corner Cup Coffee House.
Ciranna admits she misses her community.
“This space is known as a community gathering place so that's been very difficult to kind of pivot and change the business model,” she said. “We don't have any seating right now so that's been the biggest change, that people can't come in and sit and stay for a while.”
Now, she's taking the “Safe Dine-in Pledge” hoping to restore her customer's confidence and lure them back inside.
"We have the plexiglass up, we are disinfecting regularly, you know everyone of course is in masks, and we're just doing everything that we can to keep this little bit of normal here for the city of Stow, with their morning coffee every day," she said.
Here's how the pledge works.
Business owners can sign up to partner with Western Reserve Hospital to review its safety guidelines. They'll also focus on CDC guidelines surrounding risk awareness, hygiene, face masks, staff screening, seating and more. Once all the protocols are in place the business gets a special window cling letting customers know they're taking safety seriously. Each participating business will also create a video giving residents an inside look at its specific safety precautions behind the scenes. The videos will be posted on the hospital and the city's social media platforms and websites.
"Our overall goal is to support this community,” Ciranna said. "The name of the game right now is just, do whatever you can to keep going, be creative, support each other."
