Businesses learn to adapt

SCHROON LAKE | A week before the state moved to shut down nonessential commercial enterprises in late March, Lisa Hess-Marks and her husband Edward, owners of Pine Cone Mercantile in Schroon Lake, sensed real trouble on the horizon. Pine Cone Mercantile sells high-end Adirondack furnishings and decor, but also maintained a couple of side businesses selling baked goods and serving as something of a replacement for the farmers' market that the town had lost in the past. "We thought, this is all getting really unusual, and we didn't know if we could stay open in the same way," Hess-Marks said. It wasn't just a business question, it was a health and welfare question, especially considering that Schroon Lake has an older and more vulnerable population. "We closed for the day on Sunday and thought about it on Monday," she said. "It was in the best interest of the health of the community that we rethink this whole thing." Pine Cone Mercantile was among the businesses that has succeeded by being flexible and willing to roll with the punches, said Susan Palisano, executive director of the Schroon Lake Chamber of Commerce. "There are obvious things that (business owners) can't do — so they have to think about what they can do," she said. For example, many small retailers that never bothered much with online stores or social media are now having to get up to speed on the available technology. That applied to the Chamber as well, which had to take its small gift shop online. Some of those changes may become permanent and lead to new ways of doing business down the road. "I'm a glass full kind of person," said Palisano. "I'm hoping we're all going to learn from this." In Ticonderoga, chamber President Matthew Courtright said that, as in Schroon Lake, merchants are getting a quick education in the virtual world. "Obviously this has changed all our lives, and we're definitely in survival mode," he said. "But in any situation you have to find the positives." The chambers, the Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism (ROOST) and the Essex County Industrial Development Agency are working closely to help businesses stay afloat and plan for the end of the pause in commercial life. Courtright said the community and businesses are also surviving by coming to the support of each other by purchasing locally. The spirit of coming together and looking out for each other "has made me proud of Ticonderoga and the five areas we represent," he said. Hess-Marks said she has noticed the inclination to band together as well. After giving it some serious thought, she and Edward decided to close down the home furnishings side of their business for now and focus on the baking and local farm products. But even the way these products were sold had to change. So Pine Cone Mercantile publishes an expansive list of available products during the week, then focuses on baking and obtaining the requested meats, cheeses, produce and other farm goods for distribution on the weekends. Hess-Marks bundles the orders together, then on the weekends peers out the window to see who's pulling up, so a non-contact drop can be made. Almost overnight, a furniture store shifted to "a focus on local agriculture and a focus on feeding the community," Hess-Marks said. Social media and word-of-mouth spread the news, and demand was fueled by a community that wanted to get closer to its food supply and support their neighbors in the agricultural community. Pine Cone adjusted its baked-goods fare to reflect the times. Comforting loaves of fresh-baked bread have taken center stage over scones and more luxurious treats. Hess-Marks has added quiche to the menu, understanding that more people are cooking at home — and consequently more people need a break from cooking at home. The agility has paid off. Producers have been "overwhelmed by the response," Hess Marks said. "It's been a bright spot in this situation."

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