JACKSONVILLE, N.C. — The end of 2020 brings a new light for small businesses.

The staff at The Unique Bee Boutique, a business that opened in January of 2020, still focuses on inventory, organization, and selling, but there have been some adjustments that owner Katrina Carrington wasn't expecting in her first year of operation.

“We ended up closing the store for a couple of months in March, which was hard,” she says.

After re-opening the doors to the store in May, Carrington and her staff changed some of the things they had in mind to ensure customers could still shop for what they wanted.

“Doing curbside deliveries, making it easier for customers to order online, so you know we're trying to adapt as much as we can,” she says.

The most dramatic change came when Carrington decided to sell products through Facebook Live events.

Even though it hasn't been the easiest year for small businesses, Carrington and The Unique Bee staff will continue to find ways to help customers, and she's optimistic for 2021.

“The theme is going to be happy, everything is just going to be happy, bright colors, we're just really excited about the new year and what that holds,” she says.

According to the US Small Business Administration, e-commerce, alternative payment options, remote work, and virtual services are expected to continue well into 2021.