The pandemic hit small businesses all across the country. As people stayed home to slow the spread, and nonessential shops closed, many business owners struggled with what their next move should be.
Jackie Jackson and her daughter, Janel, own a Kilwin's ice cream shop on Michigan Avenue. They closed in March due to the pandemic. They were planning to reopen in early June when just days beforehand their store was a victim of massive looting downtown. They arrived on the scene when looters will still in the shop; they begged them to spare their store but not avail. Much of the shop was destroyed.