Kosciusko Chamber, KEDCO Talk Economic Matters
August 6, 2020 at 1:13 a.m.
Kosciusko Chamber, KEDCO Talk Economic Matters
By David [email protected]
Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Rob Parker and Kosciusko Economic Development Corporation CEO Alan Tio provided updates on what they’re seeing in businesses locally.
“The economy for the second quarter took a tumble for many companies. Zimmer Biomet released their quarterly earnings, down as expected with elective surgeries, but has picked up sharply into the early parts of the third quarter,” Parker said.
According to Orthopedics Today, quoting a news release from Zimmer Biomet, the Warsaw-based company reported second-quarter net sales of $1.226 billion, a 38.3% decrease from the prior year period, a net loss of $206.6 million and an adjusted net earnings of $10.2 million. Zimmer Biomet also reported a diluted loss per share of $1 and an adjusted diluted earnings per share of $0.05, a 97.4% decrease from the prior year period.
Parker said it seems to be that the economy is recovering. “If you look at the economy in terms of the Dow and stock market, they’re back to all-time highs, which is incredible, because typically” the stock looks three to six months down the road. “So if we’re seeing that, that means there’s good business growth opportunities, which, again, in the current situation is very positive.”
He said there certainly are struggles locally.
“There’s less commerce going on, there’s still unemployment that is higher than it should be. And there are things that are still going on to help our members and to help our community,” Parker said.
The Warsaw Community Development Corporation still has the facade grant for downtown businesses that need to improve the looks of their building. There’s also a revolving loan for businesses in the entire city of Warsaw that has about $400,000 in it, which is available in $50,000 increments.
“We encourage anybody who is needing to improve their business, in light of any decision criteria, but especially now with COVID and going to more eCommerce, we certainly could do that. I would encourage any individuals to get with the Chamber and we’d love to help with that,” Parker said.
On Aug. 13-15, there will be sidewalk sales at downtown Warsaw businesses. Everyone is encouraged to wear masks.
“It would be a great opportunity for kids going back to school and parents who might be going back to their job to get some new clothes and frequent our downtown shops. We just really appreciate the community support for that,” Parker said.
Later, Parker said the Chamber is in the process of putting together a communitywide gift card program, with details to be released soon.
“We’re working on something where, if you wanted to buy a gift card, it will be good for multiple entities throughout the county, not just one individual. And when we kick it off, there will be an incentive for people to purchase those gift cards, a match to a certain degree,” he said.
Tio said KEDCO still has its Small Business Relief Fund and dollars available. The loans can be up to $10,000 at zero interest to help companies with business recovery and job retention opportunities. There’s an online application and the committee meets weekly.
“We appreciate the city of Warsaw, the county, the town of Winona Lake and the state of Indiana contributing to that fund,” Tio said, noting the fund has $400,000 to loan out.
He said KEDCO continues to reach out to companies in the area. Just himself, he said he’s worked with about 30 companies this year, with half still pursuing some kind of job creation or investment project or opportunity. Other companies are looking for ways to grow and do so in this county.
KEDCO also is supporting its workforce housing initiative. He said he appreciates the support from the city of Warsaw, the county, the town of Milford and other areas to identify areas where workforce housing can occur.
“We’re in really unchartered waters, different times ... and we think our community is very well positioned to support people who might want to come here from a large market, maybe come home from a different area and be able to provide access to a really unique quality of life as well as the kind of industries and employers we have here that can help people advance in their careers. So we can help build that pipeline, provide tours of the area, help thousands of partners provide jobs. We just want to provide that single point of contact along the way,” Tio said.
He mentioned that on Wednesday KEDCO launched a weekly podcast series called “Clearly Kosciusko,” which can be found on iTunes and GooglePlay.
“The idea is really to help tell the stories about people who have moved here or who can share in their experiences on the community,” Tio said. The first guest is Jay Michaels from the Wagon Wheel Theatre.
Warsaw Mayor Joe Thallemer said nothing in the community seemed to have stopped.
“This community is a dynamic community and there’s expansion out at the Tech Park. There’s expansion out at the Airport Industrial Park,” he said.
The Wagon Wheel Theatre has had a rough year, Thallemer said, but they’ve tried to adjust and adapt and are presenting “Always ... Patsy Cline” under a tent Thursdays through Sundays in August.
“They’ve been a huge part of this community and a regional, statewide, multi-state draw for their quality of productions and we sure want to try to support them through these tough times, as we do all of our businesses, restaurants and bars,” Thallemer said. “The entertainment/recreation side of this has been hit hard. ... It’s just very critical we try to support all those businesses that are being restricted by the COVID situation.”
A look at the state’s WARN notices shows that many hotels from Greenfield and Goshen to Indianapolis and South Bend laid off hundreds of workers in July as the pandemic has limited or halted travel and vacations. This year, two new hotels opened in Warsaw so far.
Asked about the pandemic on local tourism, Thallemer said people are taking shorter trips and not as enamored about flying, taking a cruise or going on a long trip.
“They’re kind of supplementing their vacation time and maybe getting away to more regional, shorter destinations. And I think we’re positioned well with our lakes to offer that,” he said.
Parker said, “It’s a balancing act. It’s tricky because obviously we want people to come, we want visitors and we want our hotels to be full. But we also people to be safe, and we also want to make sure people coming here are safe and not spreading the virus unnecessarily. The travel industry has absolutely been killed with this COVID-19. It’s not looking to come out of it anytime soon. So it’s always a concern.”
Last time he checked, he said the innkeepers tax is down significantly for Kosciusko County.
“But the hotels, the larger ones, are still doing OK, at least the ones I’ve talked to. But like the mayor said, we are well-positioned to pick up some day travel. There are still some events that are taking place that bring people here, so that’s a good thing,” Parker said.
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Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Rob Parker and Kosciusko Economic Development Corporation CEO Alan Tio provided updates on what they’re seeing in businesses locally.
“The economy for the second quarter took a tumble for many companies. Zimmer Biomet released their quarterly earnings, down as expected with elective surgeries, but has picked up sharply into the early parts of the third quarter,” Parker said.
According to Orthopedics Today, quoting a news release from Zimmer Biomet, the Warsaw-based company reported second-quarter net sales of $1.226 billion, a 38.3% decrease from the prior year period, a net loss of $206.6 million and an adjusted net earnings of $10.2 million. Zimmer Biomet also reported a diluted loss per share of $1 and an adjusted diluted earnings per share of $0.05, a 97.4% decrease from the prior year period.
Parker said it seems to be that the economy is recovering. “If you look at the economy in terms of the Dow and stock market, they’re back to all-time highs, which is incredible, because typically” the stock looks three to six months down the road. “So if we’re seeing that, that means there’s good business growth opportunities, which, again, in the current situation is very positive.”
He said there certainly are struggles locally.
“There’s less commerce going on, there’s still unemployment that is higher than it should be. And there are things that are still going on to help our members and to help our community,” Parker said.
The Warsaw Community Development Corporation still has the facade grant for downtown businesses that need to improve the looks of their building. There’s also a revolving loan for businesses in the entire city of Warsaw that has about $400,000 in it, which is available in $50,000 increments.
“We encourage anybody who is needing to improve their business, in light of any decision criteria, but especially now with COVID and going to more eCommerce, we certainly could do that. I would encourage any individuals to get with the Chamber and we’d love to help with that,” Parker said.
On Aug. 13-15, there will be sidewalk sales at downtown Warsaw businesses. Everyone is encouraged to wear masks.
“It would be a great opportunity for kids going back to school and parents who might be going back to their job to get some new clothes and frequent our downtown shops. We just really appreciate the community support for that,” Parker said.
Later, Parker said the Chamber is in the process of putting together a communitywide gift card program, with details to be released soon.
“We’re working on something where, if you wanted to buy a gift card, it will be good for multiple entities throughout the county, not just one individual. And when we kick it off, there will be an incentive for people to purchase those gift cards, a match to a certain degree,” he said.
Tio said KEDCO still has its Small Business Relief Fund and dollars available. The loans can be up to $10,000 at zero interest to help companies with business recovery and job retention opportunities. There’s an online application and the committee meets weekly.
“We appreciate the city of Warsaw, the county, the town of Winona Lake and the state of Indiana contributing to that fund,” Tio said, noting the fund has $400,000 to loan out.
He said KEDCO continues to reach out to companies in the area. Just himself, he said he’s worked with about 30 companies this year, with half still pursuing some kind of job creation or investment project or opportunity. Other companies are looking for ways to grow and do so in this county.
KEDCO also is supporting its workforce housing initiative. He said he appreciates the support from the city of Warsaw, the county, the town of Milford and other areas to identify areas where workforce housing can occur.
“We’re in really unchartered waters, different times ... and we think our community is very well positioned to support people who might want to come here from a large market, maybe come home from a different area and be able to provide access to a really unique quality of life as well as the kind of industries and employers we have here that can help people advance in their careers. So we can help build that pipeline, provide tours of the area, help thousands of partners provide jobs. We just want to provide that single point of contact along the way,” Tio said.
He mentioned that on Wednesday KEDCO launched a weekly podcast series called “Clearly Kosciusko,” which can be found on iTunes and GooglePlay.
“The idea is really to help tell the stories about people who have moved here or who can share in their experiences on the community,” Tio said. The first guest is Jay Michaels from the Wagon Wheel Theatre.
Warsaw Mayor Joe Thallemer said nothing in the community seemed to have stopped.
“This community is a dynamic community and there’s expansion out at the Tech Park. There’s expansion out at the Airport Industrial Park,” he said.
The Wagon Wheel Theatre has had a rough year, Thallemer said, but they’ve tried to adjust and adapt and are presenting “Always ... Patsy Cline” under a tent Thursdays through Sundays in August.
“They’ve been a huge part of this community and a regional, statewide, multi-state draw for their quality of productions and we sure want to try to support them through these tough times, as we do all of our businesses, restaurants and bars,” Thallemer said. “The entertainment/recreation side of this has been hit hard. ... It’s just very critical we try to support all those businesses that are being restricted by the COVID situation.”
A look at the state’s WARN notices shows that many hotels from Greenfield and Goshen to Indianapolis and South Bend laid off hundreds of workers in July as the pandemic has limited or halted travel and vacations. This year, two new hotels opened in Warsaw so far.
Asked about the pandemic on local tourism, Thallemer said people are taking shorter trips and not as enamored about flying, taking a cruise or going on a long trip.
“They’re kind of supplementing their vacation time and maybe getting away to more regional, shorter destinations. And I think we’re positioned well with our lakes to offer that,” he said.
Parker said, “It’s a balancing act. It’s tricky because obviously we want people to come, we want visitors and we want our hotels to be full. But we also people to be safe, and we also want to make sure people coming here are safe and not spreading the virus unnecessarily. The travel industry has absolutely been killed with this COVID-19. It’s not looking to come out of it anytime soon. So it’s always a concern.”
Last time he checked, he said the innkeepers tax is down significantly for Kosciusko County.
“But the hotels, the larger ones, are still doing OK, at least the ones I’ve talked to. But like the mayor said, we are well-positioned to pick up some day travel. There are still some events that are taking place that bring people here, so that’s a good thing,” Parker said.
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