Jake Ostreicher had been counting the days until he could reopen his barbershops, and he said customers couldn't wait either.
But the owner of the Chop Shop, which has two locations — in Milford and Medfield — said as his business prepared to reopen last week, the problems started almost immediately.
Before the pandemic hit, about 10 barbers worked at Ostreicher's shops; most were self-employed and rented space there. One barber quit the day before the business reopened, Ostreicher said, because following the state's new protocols during the coronavirus pandemic is so time consuming he didn't think he would make enough money. In the week since opening, another barber and a receptionist have also quit. The receptionist said she doesn't want to lose her unemployment benefits.
"We’re all making way less money than we would on unemployment, and it’s really difficult. Just doing one haircut is like preparing for surgery. ... We’re literally disinfecting every surface at our stations between our clients — every item, every comb, every brush," Ostreicher said. "So you’re doing twice the work for half the money when you could just stay home and get the check."
Phase one of Gov. Baker's four-phase plan to reopen the Massachusetts economy in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis took effect last week, allowing some businesses to open, including barbershops, hair salons and car washes. The decisions on which businesses can open when have been made by the Reopening Advisory Board, a state panel chaired by Lieutenant Gov. Karyn Polito and Secretary of Housing and Economic Development Mike Kennealy. The state's guidance also says that while all municipalities must adhere to state regulations at a minimum, towns and cities can add to these restrictions.
The result, some business owners say, is a confusing set of rules that varies from town to town. These rules have led to some businesses having to hire more staff and put new protocols in place that increase operating costs, decrease customer capacity, or both.
Amora Schena, co-owner of the Revere ice cream shop Banana Boat, said what used to be window service is now curbside, which adds two or three steps to the process of serving food. She said she needs more staff to run a business that — in the short term, at least — will make less money.
"The employees are under a lot more pressure. There’s a lot more to do than just our regular window service. I definitely need double the help," said Schena. "I have two people answering the phone, two people delivering the food out to the cars, and then I have, like, four girls in here making the stuff and trying to keep up with phone calls."
And she said she doesn't entirely understand all of the restrictions. She knows the precautions are to keep everyone safe, and authorites don't want crowds. But she says delivering food to people's cars puts her closer to her customers than if there were a counter between them.
"We have like a four-foot, five-foot counter," she said. "I feel like I’m a little closer to a customer handing them a bag than I am inside the store."
Dominic Previte, who owns the Somerville Carwash and Detail Center, said his business is nowhere near full capacity, but at least it's open. That doesn't mean he isn't frustrated, and like many others, confused. He doesn't understand why a business like his had to shut down at all. He said his car wash business requires next to no contact with customers, and he could have run his detail business in a similar way — sanitizing a car before and after cleaning. He pointed out that car dealerships, which were deemed essential, were allowed to do detail work during the shutdown.
"You just couldn’t get in front of the right person to explain how a car wash operates," he lamented. "We get lumped in with hair salons and barbers when realistically we’re maintenance and repairs, which are essential."
But public health experts say the calculations, while occasionally hard to understand, are made with the public's best interests in mind, balancing what's best for social distancing and for the economy.
Lou Ann Bruno-Murtha, medical director of infection prevention and control at Cambridge Health Alliance, said the problem is that officials need to create rules with the assumption that some number of people will ignore them, putting the public at risk.
"How do you prevent someone from removing their mask?" she asked. "It’s hard to do. And they could take it off in a crowded situation and put others at risk. So I think trying to balance the concern about somebody that’s being noncompliant and, you know, having that ability to ensure the physical space should you encounter that situation, it’s all a balancing act."
The fact that the rules are made for the "what if" situations is especially hard to hear for Chop Shop owner Ostreicher. He has cut back his staff and reduced the number of chairs. All clients have to make appointments — there are no walk-ins allowed — and wait in their cars until called. And everyone in the shop wears a mask. But, he said, the numbers don't add up.
"At this point, I can’t stay open," he said. "I’ll be in so much debt by the end of it, how am I really gonna stay open, if we’re making half of what we make? It’s not gonna survive. It sucks to say it out loud. Now I have to completely reimagine and rethink and rebuild it."
