2020 has been a year unlike any other. And there are plenty of lessons to be gleaned from it. Entrepreneurs, including those in the healthy vending industry, can learn a lot by reflecting on 2020 and the way certain businesses weathered the storm or got swept away by it.

 

Let’s take a closer look at just five of the big lessons we’ve gained during an unprecedented fiscal year:

 

There’s no time like the present.

If there’s one thing 2020 has taught us, it’s that there’s no use waiting around for things to happen. You just never know what might come along and sideline your plans. And conversely, you never know what kind of events might happen that give your business an unexpected boost — there are plenty of companies and industries that saw remarkable growth because of the pandemic.

Maintaining supply chains is key.

We all remember how hospitals and healthcare facilities were in dire need of personal protective equipment and other essential gear early on in the pandemic, and even now in many cases. The lesson is that maintaining your supply chains and inventory isn’t just a good business practice — it’s absolutely essential. You’ll always want to have those lifelines in good shape for whatever might come over the horizon.

Flexible and innovative businesses succeed.

The businesses that weathered the storm of 2020 tended to be flexible and innovative. So many things changed about daily life, and businesses and entrepreneurs needed to change with them. When change comes, adapting your offerings and remaining flexible is key to staying afloat.

It’s important to think about the “what-ifs.”

While no one was prepared for the scale of the COVID-19 pandemic, those in the know were well aware that something of this magnitude could happen. So, it’s always a good idea to think about the “what-ifs” in terms of your business. And those “what-ifs” don’t have to be on a global scale. Just take some time to think about what happens if two of your machines break at the same time, or a supplier falls short one week. It’s always a good idea to be prepared!

We can learn from the past.

When it comes to COVID-19, we could look back to the Spanish Flu outbreak of 1918 or the first SARS outbreak in the early 2000s to use as predictive models. And that same logic applies in business — we can look at history to model what could happen in our present, or the future. That allows entrepreneurs to see what worked in the past, and what didn’t, and how those lessons can be used now.

 

Forge Ahead In 2021

The great thing about the healthy vending business is that it’s largely recession-proof. Healthy eating habits actually improve during tough economic times! If you’re interested in launching your career in the healthy vending industry, contact Naturals2Go to learn more.