South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster has allowed numerous nonessential stores to reopen two weeks after closing them due to COVID-19. Starting Tuesday, many department stores, flea markets, florists, bookstores and music shops reopened for business.
Nancy Russell, manager of Page 6 Boutique in Fort Mill says it’s bittersweet. She doesn’t want customers to think they don’t care about their safety.
“It’s a really confusing time," she said. "We’re not sure what exactly to do because we don’t want to offend anybody."
Russell says the store is following all guidelines by only letting five people in at a time. Her staff is wearing gloves and they have Plexiglas at the register. Still, she says reopening in uncertain times isn’t easy -- but that’s the only way to keep the business alive.
“You can’t stay closed forever," Russell said. "So to survive, we eventually have to open our doors up. It’s a really hard time to navigate. We’re trying to do the right thing, but at one point we have got to create sales to survive as a small business.”
The reopenings in South Carolina come as protestors descended on the capital of North Carolina urging lawmakers to “ReOpen NC.” Gov. Roy Cooper responded to the protests at a briefing this afternoon saying North Carolinians staying home has saved thousands of lives.
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