INGLEWOOD, Calif. – When’s Ms. B’s M & M Soul Food restaurant moved to a new location on Imperial Highway, the owner, 71-year-old Beverly Brinson, known as 'Ms. B,' could barely contain her excitement. To decorate the new place, she took an aquarium and chandelier from her son’s house.
“And the heat lamps they were in my daughter’s house and I took those. So my kids told me, 'Mom, you can’t come to our house again, because you take all of our stuff.' And I told them that’s OK, but I have keys to their house,” said Brinson with a chuckle.
She’s still in the process of unpacking. The new location was an unexpected miracle for her business, which has seen its share of hardships in the last few years. First, it was hit hard by the 2008 recession. Then as recovery seemed on the horizon, with the Rams building a stadium close by, the landlord more than tripled their rent.
Brinson fought to stay open, for her family, whose pictures adorned the walls and for her employees, whose names she wrote on the side of her building. And then, weeks before having to close, she was offered a new location for less than her previous rent.
“Whenever I talk about it and tell people about it, and how good 'He' is, it makes me emotional because I just get happy,” Brinson said.
But that happiness was short-lived. Within months of moving to the new location, state and local stay at home orders have effectively eliminated 90% of her business.
“I don’t sleep, if I sleep two hours, I’m doing good, because I’m constantly worried about how I’m gonna make ends meet, and how I’m gonna take care of the people and my community. I’ve even lost weight and I own a restaurant,” she said, with a slightly more ironic laugh.
A few weeks ago, she was forced to do the unthinkable; cut her staff by more than half, from 19 now down to eight. And in the last few days, she’s run out of cash to buy her essentials.
“My thing is, I don’t have any money to buy any products, to get my greens, my yams, my short-ribs, my oxtails,” Brinson said, staring at her nearly empty pantry.
“Right now, with what’s going on, I’m scared because we’re just barely hanging on. I’ve spent all of my money, trying to keep them, we’ve applied for the small business [loans], that hasn’t come through for us,” she said, tearfully.
Brinson has turned to the Small Business Administration for help. She applied for the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), the EIDL Advance and the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Her daughter Toni White, helped her fill out the applications:
“The process has been extenuating and frustrating. One time I stayed on the phone for four hours, waiting to speak with someone,” said White.
They got word a few days ago that because of their credit, they had been denied for the EIDL relief, they’re still waiting to hear back on the PPP.
The programs have faced criticism for providing loans to dozens of publicly traded companies, with tens of millions in market value.
Nevertheless, both EIDL and PPP have run out of funds in mere weeks. In that time PPP processed more than 14 years worth of loans in less than 14 days, according to the SBA. They approved 1.6 million loans, but with 30 million small businesses in the U.S., that barely scratches the surface.
No business and no loans, could spell the end of this small restaurant.
But hope is the last thing to die. Brinson has faith that the latest $483 billion coronavirus stimulus bill, which funds PPP and EIDL will come in time to save her business.
“So don’t think in life, when you’re down, that you’re going to have to stay down because it’s always something, and 'He' will always take you through it,” said Brinson, her voice cracking with emotion.