COVID-19 caused a huge decline in the United States economy due to employment rates falling to an all time low, in 2020, 9.9 out of 100 individuals were unemployed. The unemployment rate in the US was highest with young – middle aged adults (25 to 44), these people only account for 39% of the population in the US, however, they accounted for about half of the unemployed people years 25 and older who lost their jobs due to COVID-19.

In 2020 during the biggest COVID-19 outbreak in the United States 29.7% of small businesses temporarily closed, small businesses are typically in only one location and have a small audience meaning they make less money compared to large businesses and organizations.

“I think one of the economic impacts is not only like were people not going to small businesses, but they were obviously ordering products from large businesses and things like that,” says Eric Randall.” And I know too because my parents are small business owners.”

During the COVID-19 outbreak a large percentage of small businesses have permanently closed and some are still temporarily closed until further notice. Large businesses such as Amazon have made the most money during the pandemic by capitalising on the large decline in small businesses and even more small businesses starting to sell products on Amazon during the outbreak allowing Amazon to reach reach an income during the pandemic in the “billions”, the large decrease in smaller businesses has allowed many larger ones to monopolize on COVID-19.

“I mean, like, there are significant barriers to entry to participate, you know. Like to sell something that’s already being sold on amazon, right? And some small businesses have pivoted to selling things on Amazon”, said Randall. “What will happen is that these companies will all of a sudden find out that Amazon’s making Amazon’s equivalent of the same product that they offered, at cheaper.”

Small businesses usually fail within the first year or two after being open meaning a large portion of them hardly affect the US economy, since most small businesses barely affect the United States economy “it wouldn’t have mattered” if they stayed closed.

“It wouldn’t, it wouldn’t have mattered if the small businesses stayed closed. It’s kind of the issue with big businesses. It doesn’t matter,” said Reed Sanders. “No matter how big or small business can be. It’s still a small business compared to big businesses. It’s nothing.”

Sanders states that it wouldn’t matter if the small businesses that are temporarily closed, stayed closed. The small businesses in the US account for 44 percent of the economic activity in the United States, small businesses also create 43.5 percent of new Jobs in the United States. Sanders states that the large number of small businesses closing “would definitely cause a decline” in the US economy, however would still recover.

“Small business is the one small thing that’s still diversifying our economy,” Sanders says. “And with those gone, it was just handed all to big business owners who control the world.”

Small businesses contribute almost half of the gross income to the US economy, virtually it should vastly affect the United States economy however with big businesses “taking over” the economy would eventually recover, if large businesses didn’t take over after the mass amount of small businesses that closed during the COVID-19 outbreak, over “627,000 new businesses open each year.” Meaning the businesses that have closed will consistently be replaced by newer ambitious businesses.