How did these companies survive the pitfalls of the COVID-19 pandemic pivot?

Many companies that emerged to manufacture and procure PPE in the early days of the pandemic have gone bust. But others with pre-existing product lines before pivoting to pandemic-related products have since managed to switch back, as supply lines and demand factors recovered and stabilized.

Nick Ngo still vividly remembers the spring of 2020, and the sudden wave of new shops making the same acrylic barriers as his business.

"During that time, companies would pop up. I remember (it was) anybody with a saw who was able to cut it," said Ngo, project manager at Sixstream Signs Ltd. in Surrey, B.C. "I don't necessarily agree with it, but that was what they were doing."

What Ngo saw was part of a larger trend, a cascade of companies suddenly jumping into the COVID-19 economy, switching production from other fields into making everything from protective barriers and hand sanitizers to cleaning wipes and personal protective equipment.

Fast-forward three years, and many companies that emerged to manufacture and procure PPE in the early days of the pandemic have gone bust. But others like Sixstream that had pre-existing product lines before pivoting to pandemic-related products related to social distancing and hygiene have since managed to switch back, as supply lines and demand factors recovered and stabilized.

Scott Thompson, founder and distiller at Mad Laboratory Distilling in Vancouver, made the switch from his usual production of whisky and other spirits to making alcohol-based hand sanitizer and wipes during the pandemic.

Mad Lab is now back to full-time production of alcoholic beverages, and Thompson said the key to weathering the COVID-19 market was to identify the nature of the swing and plan for the long term accordingly.

"We decided to not make selling sanitizer a part of our business," Thompson said. "It turned out that we were right, but we were hopeful it was going to be a short-term demand."