HOWARD, Wis. (SPECTRUM NEWS) — Holly Kremsreiter is glad to be back at work.

Over the past two months she missed the clients at Feldsteins, a Howard jewelry store.

Like many other operations across the state, Feldsteins was careful to protect the health of customers and employees when it reopened.

“The owners keep us very informed and they do their research on it,” Kremsreiter said. “I feel very safe coming to work.” 

Social distancing is encouraged and staff can either wear masks all day, or put them on when customers enter the store. There’s also the now-ubiquitous disinfectant wipes and hand sanitizer at the front of the business.

In De Pere, Mayor James Boyd said not all businesses have reopened and many are playing it safe.

“Businesses are trickling in,” he said. “The ones who are doing it, we think, are doing it the right way, and the safe way.”

Guidelines from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been widely used since the Safe At Home Order was overturned in mid-May. Some counties have also developed their own set of guidelines. 

Brown County joined that group this week with a new plan designed to help local businesses get back into gear safely. The document is a joint effort of the county's health department and local businesses and industry sectors. It's crafted to be a localized guide rather than one-size-fits-all.

At Feldsteins, Kremsreiter said she’s seeing customer traffic change daily.

“We’re picking up speed now that people know we’re open,” she said. “We still get quite a few phone calls asking if we are because it’s kind of each business on their own if they want to open.”