Wagga business owners are living through some of the worst days in their lives, but some have proved determined to adapt to adversity and drastically overhaul their operating models to survive.
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Business owners have been meeting online to trade survival strategies and tips for living in a coronavirus-infested world through the Founders Collective, a program run through Charles Sturt University.
One its members is Adam Bannister, who "went into shock" when he saw 80 per cent of his yearly profits evaporate before his eyes over the course of 48 hours.
He runs Adam Bannister Event Production, but with events being slashed worldwide he became "completely morose" for days on end.
Faced with a sink-or-swim ultimatum, Mr Bannister overhauled his business model and moved towards online meetings and corporate webinars instead of face-to-face events.
He met with a "surprising" level of success this way, and Mr Bannister said he will undoubtedly continue to run more online events after the coronavirus storm has passed.
"It's been a real arc for me personally, going from being completely despondent to now being able to see the silver lining myself," Mr Bannister said.
"The world has changed, but the need for human connection hasn't gone anywhere. You can still have a real connection and solve problems online, and I'm educating people about what's possible with technology."
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His is one of many survival stories from the Founders Collective, and CSU Innovation Hub manager Annette Davies said Wagga businesses had proved remarkably resilient in the face of adversity.
The Founders Collective itself had to innovate quickly; the newly launched program had only held one business gathering before the coronavirus shutdown came into effect.
They now meet online, and they now discuss mostly coronavirus-related coping strategies such as advice for working from home, navigating the JobKeeper payment, and self-care in self-isolation.
During their meetings business share their stories of struggle and hardship, but also their stories of survival and triumph.
"They say necessity is the mother of invention, and we're all going through that phase at the moment," Ms Davies said.
"A week ago we were struggling to get by day by day, but slowly we're starting to feel we can plan a couple of weeks ahead and look to the future."
Kenji Sato
Kenji Sato is a handsome journalist at The Daily Advertiser who enjoys writing flattering bios about himself in the third person. He can be contacted by email at kenji.sato@dailyadvertiser.com.au or by mobile on 0448 927 612.
Kenji Sato is a handsome journalist at The Daily Advertiser who enjoys writing flattering bios about himself in the third person. He can be contacted by email at kenji.sato@dailyadvertiser.com.au or by mobile on 0448 927 612.
