Alberto Ortiz of Job Creators Network writes in The Hill that a return to profitability for businesses depends on their unmatched knowledge within their own industries, enabling them to balance keeping customers safe with making a profit:

…But just because businesses are open does not mean that customers will show up. A successful recovery must stimulate demand by making people confident that getting back to their daily routines is safe. While the supply side reforms like tax cuts and deregulation can help those consumers and businesses on the margin, they are just not enough to get the traumatized population widely spending again. In the challenging environment today, the Laffer curve takes a backseat to the coronavirus curve.

Only by reassuring Americans that their chances of catching this disease are slim can policymakers and businesses stimulate the demand needed to bring back the economy. Each industry, not the government, must take the lead on developing protocols and standard operating procedures that will prevent their customers from getting infected and provide them much needed peace of mind. Specific industry solutions from the bottom up to safely reopen the economy are far more effective than requirements from the top down by the likely out of touch government officials.

Not only do businesses have significant incentive to keep their customers safe, but they have unmatched knowledge with their industries. They can develop the nimble solutions that can thread the needle between keeping customers safe and keeping themselves profitable. The government may permit restaurants to reopen if they cut table numbers by 50 percent. Yet these owners, who know every inch of their floor plans, may know how to reposition their tables to protect diners from each other. Such a solution can allow restaurants to maintain more tables, protect patrons, and stay profitable, as government solutions may not accomplish this.