LOUISVILLE, Ky. — For nine long weeks this year, C&R Beauty Bar on Bardstown Road was closed to customers. Like tens of thousands of small business owners in Kentucky, co-owners Ricka O'Bannon and Chenica Racine kept their company afloat with a loan from the federal government’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

“We used it for payroll and utilities, things like that,” O’Bannon told Spectrum News 1. “The PPP loan helped when we were shut down so we could pay for all the obligations that come with being a business owner.” When the salon opened back up, the loan provided funds to buy personal protective equipment so it could be operated safely.

Now, the federal government has authorized a new round of PPP loans in the latest $900 billion COVID-19 relief package, but O’Bannon said she doesn’t plan to take out another loan for the time being. She and her business partner spent much of the summer and fall finding other funding streams, including grants and other small business loans.

“It helped us to not be as anxious for the second wave, if we were going to get shut down again, or if they were going to make some more money available through the Small Business Administration,” O’Bannon said. “We didn’t feel as nervous about it because we continued to search for funding from other places.”

Her business has also benefited from a steady return of customers. “Fortunately, because we tried to follow all the protocols when it came to reopening, our clients have felt comfortable enough to come back,” she said. “Even though our capacity is reduced, it's been fairly steady, so we've been really blessed with that.”

O’Bannon said too many mom and pop businesses missed out on the first round of PPP and she hopes they can participate in 2021. “I would say people who didn't get it the first round should definitely apply for it,” she said. “That's another reason why we're kind of backing up, because we were able to get one, we want other people to have the opportunity.”

The $285 billion in forgivable PPP loans comes at a time when businesses are struggling through another pandemic surge. Kentucky set records for COVID-19 cases and deaths in December and saw restaurants closed to indoor dining for weeks. 

The reauthorization of PPP arrived later than some hoped, but many in the small business community remain grateful.

“While it’s a shame it took this long, independent businesses will be thrilled at the prospect of a new round of relief,” said Jennifer Rubenstein, director of the Louisville Independent Business Alliance. “The pandemic has lasted so much longer than we expected when the first relief packages were passed in the early spring.”

Last month, Primo’s Pizzeria owner Ankit Chudgar told Spectrum News 1 that the PPP loan he received in April kept this restaurant going when business was slow in late spring. But the funds quickly ran out and he began to publicly call for the program's renewal. 

“Most of us are teetering on the edge, and with conditions getting worse right now, we’re going to get less and less traffic,” Chudgar said. ”Without another stimulus I don’t think very many of us will make it to spring.”