It was nearing the end of June, and Josh Gervais was wondering how long his gym, Top Dawgs Fitness and Training, could survive.
“My landlord can only help me for so long. I can only make government assistance programs last for so long. Where am I going to get income from?” said the 28-year-old gym owner.
Wanting to do his part to stop the spread of the virus, Gervais closed his doors in the middle of March, a few days before the provincial government ordered all non-essential businesses to close due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We had no idea for how long. We were hoping a two-, three-week thing,” said Gervais.
Of course, it wasn’t only a few weeks. Gyms and fitness facilities were among the last businesses to reopen in Stage 3 of the province’s plan, meaning Top Dawgs stayed closed for four months.
And while Gervais said he had members reaching out to tell him it was OK to continue taking the gym fees from their accounts, he decided to pause all membership fees at the end of March.
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