To kick off Small Business Week the Austin Chamber participated in honoring local businesses who made our community a better place during COVID-19. Sponsored by the City of Austin Economic Development Office the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce and all of our sister chambers were invited to recognize one small business to receive the "Stronger than Ever" award for the difference they made in our community.

The onset of the pandemic was a shock to all of us. Our lives were turned upside down. Businesses were forced to shut their doors and chart a new path forward to keep themselves afloat.

Personal Protective Equipment has been tough to source during different phases of the pandemic reliably. One of our local businesses stepped up to help fill in the gap this community had in acquiring PPE. Austin Couch Potatoes shifted their factories from making furnishings to making masks, gowns, and other PPE for our frontline workers. The pivot from furniture to PPE manufacturing was dubbed “Furnishing the Frontline.”

The Austin Chamber, our frontline workers, and our community are grateful for Austin Couch Potatoes’ work to make Austin a better and safer place. The efforts they undertook to manufacture and distribute PPE embodies the spirit of Austin and its business community.

Austin Couch Potatoes even gave masks away to the public at their stores across the Austin area. They were able to expand this effort to the outside of Austin and helped additional counties with their needs across Texas.

The Austin Chamber of Commerce is excited to recognize the team’s incredible work at the Austin Couch Potatoes for their help in making their business and our community Stronger than Ever!