Santa Cruz Businesses Go Online
“Before the coronavirus pandemic, on-demand delivery companies were still figuring out how to get people to try their services. Not anymore,” Alison Griswold writes about the explosion of the online delivery economy in her insightful piece in Quartz, ‘The month the entire world signed up for delivery.”
Even businesses that had little to no e-commerce presence before this are hustling to transform their websites into functional online shops. Some are just hustling to get functioning websites, period.
Even the Amish are selling online, NPR reports.
In Santa Cruz, a town hungry for local goods and laced with tech wizards (and one day soon, lightning-fast fiber?), small businesses are doing everything they can to turn their businesses to e-commerce.
Humble Sea Brewing Co. makes its intentions clear. Get it to go.
Mission Hill Creamery not only began offering curbside pick-up and delivery, they also built out an incredibly functional online ordering system that allows customers to order their favorite treats down to the marshmallow topping. Cannabis dispensaries have long since hopped aboard the e-commerce wave thanks to platforms like Jane, and they’re certainly harvesting the benefits now. Long live California!
Sleepless Media web and branding agency says they are busier than ever. Not only are they pros at getting businesses a high-quality web presence, they’re one of the few prized Authorized Shopify Plus Experts in the world (yes, the whole world). In other words, you want Sleepless if you want e-commerce.
But what does “e-commerce” look like if you don’t sell a physical, shippable product?
Luma Yoga, with the help of Santa Cruz Works, transitioned to a completely online live-streaming yoga studio. Because of their preemptive action, they were one of the first local studios to go online, but kept their classes completely free. That was just the beginning.
“Luma prepared early for the changes and setbacks that a rapidly spreading virus would mean for our community,” Luma Co-founder and Director Valerie Moselle wrote in a blog post on March 31. “However, no amount of preparedness is enough to handle the magnitude of this pandemic.”
Luma has continued to emphasize adaptation, nimbleness, and community service. They recently launched incredibly innovative virtual wellness packages and services, including one-on-one consultations with their Traditional Chinese Medicine, massage, breathwork, and acupuncture professionals, and more.
Luma continues to detail their journey through the ups and downs with insight and transparency on their blog and social media.
Build It, Break it, Build It Again
“As a primarily people-facing business, I was terrified,” says Frank Scott Krueger, Co-founder and Creative Director of Humble Sea Brewing Co. “My two partners and I addressed the company (then around 35 people) to openly let them know this is not a good scenario for any brewery, bar, or restaurant in Santa Cruz. It was looking like a long, bumpy ride.”
Humble Sea knew they needed to pivot as quickly as possible to make their now take-out bar safe, but transitioning their online capabilities would be another adventure. For Krueger, that adventure would be a few sleepless nights.
With his partners, Taylor West, Head of Operations, and Nick Pavlina, Head Brewer, Krueger launched what looks like a completely new business model. Within 24 hours of the announcement that shelter-in-place was coming, they flipped their website into an e-commerce store and were ready to ship beer anywhere in California! All set.
They received 500 orders within the first two hours. Their website’s backend crashed. They had no experience shipping beer.
“I turned off sales and we got to work trying to figure out how to fulfill these orders as quickly as possible,” Krueger says. “Ready. Fire. Aim.”
Like many small businesses in the first moments of e-commerce operations, Humble Sea quickly realized that their existing website was simply not built to handle their new level of activity. So Krueger worked to transition the web shop to Shopify, a more robust, scalable e-commerce tool. They bifurcated their web presence into HumbleSea.com—now their shipping-based online store—and HumbleTaproom.com, a new home for local to-go beer and merchandise pickups.
Okay, online ordering done. What about shipping? They needed a way to quickly print hundreds of shipping labels that could integrate with the systems of the small company (specializing in shipping alcohol) they use. A shipping company that uses a Windows-only system.
Amazingly, Krueger and his teammates MacGyvered a super-fast batch label printing system that integrates Shopify, Google Sheets, Zappier, and the shipping software.
Now they’re making more beer than ever, hiring back some of their furloughed staff, and bringing on new brewers. And, perhaps the biggest business model change—selling their small-batch craft beer all across the state.
“Our new systems are changing every week, and we're still operating in a state of chaos,” Krueger says (putting to words a truly universally felt sentiment).
He emphasizes how grateful Humble Sea is for loyal customers who have made it possible for Humble Sea to stay afloat in the maelstrom.
Same Systems, New Products
Some businesses are rethinking their business models down to what they sell.
Co-founder of 11th Hour Coffee with his brother, Brayden, Joel Estby saw the need for monumental business changes well before shelter-in-place.
The week before Santa Cruz County's mandate, they held a company meeting to brainstorm ideas as a team. Their dip in customers began even before SIP. Like all of us, they had no idea what the future would look like, so they decided to close down completely, regroup, and wait.
“The information on hand was so unknown at the time and we wanted to keep the staff safe,” says Estby. “During these first few weeks, we realized that this would be a long-term impact and began to re-develop our online presence and come up with contactless payment options for the cafe itself.”
They came up with, among other new protocol, online pre-ordering and paying, and installed self-service ordering kiosks to help customers and baristas maintain safe distance. Thanks to the roasting and bulk-sales side of their business, 11th Hour already had a fully functioning e-commerce platform ready to go.
And then, like many other food service spots around the country, 11th Hour realized they had the supply chain to offer more than their typical coffee and cafe menu. They launched a pantry box service, providing fresh produce, dairy and non-dairy milks, local eggs, the most ooey-gooey cookies you’ve ever had, and delightful additions like sustainable seafood, bottled iced lattes, and house-made granola.
“I think in the coming months, we will continue to shift our offerings to meet the ever-changing needs of the community as this pandemic plays out,” Joel Estby says.
My tear-inducing Pantry Box from 11th Hour.
Two weeks ago, I ordered my first pantry box from 11th Hour. My pick-up day happened to be a horrendously challenging one; as I carried the heavy box to my car, a flood of relief coursed through my body. Tears flushed in my eyes. At least dinner was taken care of. I ate one of the cookies immediately.
I emailed 11th Hour after I got home to gush my gratitude.
“This made my day to read,” Brayden Estby wrote back to me. “Thank you for taking the time to write and send this to us!”
“We are here to serve the PEOPLE.”
All Together Now
Daily, we’re all digesting that “when this is all over” is not coming anytime soon.
“Currently, e-commerce is our largest revenue driver and I don't foresee that changing, even after we're allowed to resume our taproom operations,” says Humble Sea’s Krueger says. “This pandemic just kicked us into 2020 faster than we could handle, but now that we're here, it's obvious that a quick click and beer at your doorstep is what people want.”
Online shopping and delivery will never replace our need for face-to-face interaction, social stimulation, drinks with friends.
But for now, thanks to their new system, Humble Sea can carry on with their beloved can releases. Last weekend, they released the All Together Foggy IPA in collaboration with the All Together Beer Project by Other Half Brewing in Brooklyn. $5 of every 4-pack goes directly to Humble Sea’s furloughed staff.
They describe it as “a worldwide collaboration brewed to support hospitality professionals struggling through the utterly insane times of COVID-19.”
Utter insanity, indeed. No one knows where this is going, but some innovative businesses who keep the joy and well-being of their people as their true north seem to be weathering it—with our community’s help—even if it means a few sleepless nights.
Julia Sinn is a freelance writer, event consultant, and project manager. Read more of her work and connect with her at juliarosesinn.com.
Do you run a business that needs help getting online or live-streaming content? Stay tuned: Santa Cruz Works is here to support you, and we’ll show you how next week. If you’re not already getting our weekly newsletter, subscribe at the bottom of our home page.