Lea Huizenga, office manager for E.Z Orchards, checks off items requested by a customer. Carryout is now a new service offered by E.Z Orchards. Other businesses are doing the same. (Jake Thomas/Salem Reporter)
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At E.Z Orchards, Lea Huizenga filled a shopping cart with celery, red onions, carrots, lots of oranges among other items. None of it was for her.
Huizenga, the store’s office manager, continued filling the cart and checking a list of items that had been requested by a customer. The items were bagged and passed off to a customer hungry for fresh produce but who wanted to avoid grocery stores during the coronavirus outbreak.
That kind of personal shopping is a new service for the family-owned produce business northeast of Salem and it’s an example of how Salem-area businesses that are still open are adapting to unprecedented circumstances.
Earlier this month, Gov. Kate Brown ordered non-essential businesses to close in an effort to contain the spread of COVID-19. Her order allowed restaurants to stay open if they offered takeout and delivery options for customers. In hopes of keeping their customers, Salem area businesses have adopted the takeout approach of restaurants.
Last week, the Salem Area Chamber of Commerce launched a Facebook page called “Salem Shops.” Businesses have turned to the page with posts describing how they’re delivering goods and services during the outbreak.
A car dealer, Mercedes-Benz of Salem, is offering to send mechanics to customers’ homes. Homebuyers can consult online with a real estate agent, Felicia Cobb. People cooped up in their homes can have vitamins, scented candles and skincare products dropped off on their porches.
“Many companies certainly utilize the Amazon and various platforms such as eBay to sell their wares,” Tom Hoffert, the Salem Chamber CEO, said in a video posted to Facebook. He said now they’re using the page to sell their products to local customers.
Depending on how long the outbreak continues, it could result in more lasting changes to how companies serve customers.
The governor’s order exempts grocery stores from having to close. John Zielinski, the owner and manager of E.Z Orchards, said that while his store could remain open he began thinking about the safety of older customers or people who have compromised immune systems and are more likely to have a severe reaction to the virus.
“We have an important part in the community to provide food,” he said.
He said that in the last two weeks the store, which offers local produce as well as donuts and soup mixes, has had about 40 takeout orders. He said orders include citrus, apples, potatoes, onions and other savory foods. Most of the carryout orders have come from older customers, he said.
Zielinski stressed that he’s not seeking to profit off the public health crisis and while offering carryout has increased business it’s also created more work for his staff of seven. He recently hired two more employees in response to increased demand.
He said E.Z. Orchards has been around since 1929 and wants to help out customers during a difficult time.
While grocery stores have stayed open, the order has closed non-essential businesses, such as Bricks & Minifigs, a store that buys and sells Legos. Matthew Bauman, who started the Keizer franchise over three years ago, said that he’s been trying to find ways to generate revenue after customer traffic slowed and then halted.
The store is part of a chain, and he said he’s been pushing the corporate office for a better online platform to sell Lego sets. Instead, the store has taken to its Facebook page to post Star Wars or Technic Lego, intricate models of cars and heavy machinery, sets or live streaming what it has in stock.
Bauman said that if someone is interested in a set, they can leave on comment on the Facebook page and arrange for pickup. He said that some customers have been interested in big technical sets that have thousands of pieces that would keep kids home from school weeks to assemble. He said they’ve sold Technic sets, intricate Lego, as well as Star Wars sets and others.
“Rollercoasters have been really popular,” he said.
Diana Cureton, the co-owner of The Freckled Bee, said she and her business partner opened up the store in downtown Salem six months ago. Cureton was already the owner of Lolplay Kids, which makes handsewn clothing, dresses, skirts and custom embroidery. Her business partner Brandy Decker already owned {spillthebeansetc} that makes T-shirts marketed toward mothers and kids. The Freckled Bee puts both company’s products in one store.
“It was just a passion of ours,” said Cureton. “Our companies worked well and wanted to fill a niche that Salem didn’t have.”
She said that both had maintained online businesses before opening up the store. With retail stores closed, she said that they’ve turned back to selling their products online, which they’ve had to discount.
She said that their landlord has given them a break on April rent but if things continue like this the physical store might have to close. They’d still need a place to make their wares she said.
But closing up shop isn’t an option for other businesses.
Bricks & Minifigs has a large selection of Legos, including many sets that have been discontinued by their manufacturer and can’t be found elsewhere, said Bauman. Customers can also trade in sets or browse the constantly changing inventory he said.
“The in-store experience is what makes us different,” he said.
Zielinski said carryout orders couldn’t replace his existing business. During the summer, people come out to the store, located in farmland north of Salem, to buy tomato plants, local berries and shortcake. In the fall, E.Z. Orchards hosts Harvestfest that includes a pumpkin patch, a corn maze and hayrides.
“The experience is part of it,” he said.
Having to cancel those events would cause him to rethink a big part of his business.
Contact reporter Jake Thomas at 503-575-1251 or [email protected] or @jakethomas2009.
