Publication record
- Original publication period
- July–December 2020
- Digitized / uploaded online
- August 10, 2026
The digitization/upload date records when this file was added to the website; it is not the article's original publication date.
Abstract
The initial community quarantine confronted small businesses with simultaneous restrictions on premises, workers, suppliers, customers, and cash flow. This conceptual review examines the early crisis as a sequence of operating decisions rather than a uniform experience of closure. Evidence through 2021 is organized around five questions: whether the firm could legally and safely operate, preserve liquidity, maintain a minimum supply route, reach viable demand, and decide what to pause, adapt, or stop. The synthesis emphasizes that digital promotion could not compensate for failed inventory, payment, or delivery arrangements, and that reopening did not automatically restore demand or working capital. It proposes a Small-Business Continuity Sequence supported by a daily cash horizon, a minimum viable offer, explicit supplier alternatives, and predefined decision triggers. The framework is designed for micro and small firms with limited managerial capacity. It is a non-empirical model and does not claim that all sectors or localities experienced quarantine in the same way.