At the beginning of the pandemic, Virginia Garcia Pivik watched as her hours at work quickly started to dwindle. Due to the economic impact of COVID-19, Pivik’s full-time position with a communications consulting firm was cut to 30 hours. And then 20.
Before long, Pivik was only working 10 hours a week for a company she had been with for over a dozen years.
When her full-time job was cut to 10 hours/week, Virginia Garcia Pivik turned to baking
She recalls thinking: “How can I help my husband? How can I help my household? With ten hours pay, I cannot do much.”
On top of this sudden change in her family’s finances, Pivik’s five-year-old daughter Mila was starting remote schooling.
To help pay for her daughter’s tutoring, Pivik did what many people have done over the past year: she started a home business.
Pivik started CalaMila Gluten Free Bakery. The name is a combination of two things that are very symbolic in Pivik’s life: calla lily flowers (referred to as calas in Pivik’s home of Argentina) and her daughter's name.
“I thought it was a beautiful fusion of two things I find very symbolic in my life,” Pivik explained.
The economic fallout caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing shutdowns inspired countless people across the country like Pivik to start new businesses, often from inside their own homes. According to Bloomberg, “the past year has seen an unprecedented wave of new businesses starting up in the U.S.”
Pivik has a gluten-free diet, so she decided to bake items for people with Celiac disease, a digestive disorder caused by reactions to gluten.
“I had to think of something that was COVID-19 friendly,” Pivik said, “so I decided to use social platforms because that is the way that everything is going.”
She started posting pictures of her homemade pies, cookies, and alfajores. “People started asking, ‘How can I order?’” Pivik said.
Soon, the orders started coming in through Facebook and Instagram.
Pivik said the help she received — all free of charge — from the local SBA office made a huge difference.
Whatever your talent is, Pivik said, “maybe this is the time to make it shine.”
“Find the resources out there. And make sure, and be assured, that you can break through,” Pivik encouraged. “You … can make it, even amidst this pandemic.”
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