Open for Business: Local business in Berlin takes hit amid pandemic

BERLIN, Md. – With the spread of the coronavirus, people at the Seaside Plumbing Inc. in Berlin say they are keeping their heads above water, but we are told it has not been easy.

“Our cancellation rates have increased by about somewhere between 20 and 30 percent, so that’s huge for us and we employ 11 field technicians, so that’s a big hit,” said Josh Martin, co-owner at the Seaside Plumbing Inc.

Josh Martin says more and more people are concerned about having visitors, so there have been fewer calls for help.

Martin says he’s also worried about not having enough money to get more protective gear that will keep both his employees and customers safe.

“How do we continue to get Tyvek suits and how do we continue to get face masks?” said Martin, “The proper ones.”

“So, that’s definitely a huge challenge is just keeping the stock levels of that protection equipment,” said Martin.

Despite these challenges Martin says they are getting a lot of support from the community and we are told there is also a bigger need for help with things like kitchen drainage issues.

Joe Paul, a field technician at Seaside Plumbing Inc. says their many years of service here on Delmarva have also helped them significantly to keep their business afloat during the pandemic.

“A lot of our call volume is return customers because they understand how we operate and they like the way that we operate,” said Paul.

And although these new changes have not come easy we are told right now it is all about keeping everyone in the community safe.

Seaside Plumbing Inc. says they are also focused on helping out other small businesses by giving out a gift card without purchase to two restaurants every week.