The second wave of COVID-19 pandemic has taken India by storm, where the number of active cases is making new records every day. The current crisis has once again dragged the country in a lockdown like condition and different State Governments have laid strict restrictions on physical movement and social gatherings. This has hampered businesses across the verticals and the IT channel business has also severely affected due to the situation. It is indeed a hard time for every stakeholder in the channel business, however, channel partners are trying hard to ensure business continuity. At the same time, they have come forward to offer their help to fight the pandemic.
“The coronavirus crisis has created a practical and ethical imperative for us to do more work that matters. However, if the crisis continues for 9 months to a year, we will have to reconfigure our business strategy to reduce the variable expenses, renegotiate fixed expenses (rent, salaries, equipment lease payments, etc.), and focus only on the survival”, said Mr. Arun Kumar Rungta, Director of Patna based Digital Equipments Pvt Ltd.
Endorsing similar views, Mr. Ashok Poddar, Director of Everrise Infosolution Pvt Ltd. said, “The situation is pathetic and it is becoming very difficult for us to manage the business. As the cases are surging at an unimaginable rate, there is a sense of panic among people. Hence, it has affected their spending preferences. We are not seeing much demand or enquiries and that has made the condition more challenging this time. Whole families are getting the corona infections and we all should help each other in this panic situation.”
“We are following the safety precautions without such as Temperature Measure / Sanitizer usage / NO ENTRY without MASK any compromise. We have changed the showroom timing as per the Government guidelines and we ensure social distancing in the shop with utmost care”, said Mr. Mahesh Soni, Director of Puducherry based Auro Enterprises, adding, “We offer home delivery and after-sales service support upon customer’s confirmation. Every bill or invoice is closed in store. We also provide complimentary 3Ply masks with the product to promote STAY SAFE, STAY HEALTHY measures.”
Despite business challenges and future uncertainty, partners have come forward to help the needy and vulnerable people. They have joined various volunteering groups to provide urgent medical assistance and food to poor patients and their relatives.
“Helping to needed through charity is the critical response to disasters such as COVID-19, and we are all geared up to assist acquaintances in case of emergency. We have associated ourselves with other volunteer groups to create a pool of oxygen cylinders, sanitisers and masks and donate to needy people”, Mr. Arun Kumar Rungta.
