SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – Congressman Kevin Kiley was on the South Shore this week for a few events and spent time with South Lake Tahoe business owners to hear about their situations and concerns.
He visited with the owners of Alpine Carpets and Borges Chiropractic before a stop at Cuppa Tahoe where he chatted with owner Sandra Santane.
Santane said small businesses are the backbone of a community, and it’s becoming increasingly difficult to keep a thriving business with rising costs of supplies and insurance.
At Cuppa Tahoe, Santane offers full-time employees a 401K, full benefits, and good pay, with the average length of service at the coffee house and bookshop being two years. Her planned grand opening in 2020 happened to be when COVID-19 shut down the world. She made it through the pandemic, then closures due to the Caldor Fire.
Kiley asked her what the biggest help he could provide was, with Santane responding “administration and insurance costs.”
The Cuppa Tahoe insurance policy has been at $11,000 a year, and in December it more than doubles to $25,000 annually.
“There is only so much I can do to absorb these increases,” said the Cuppa Tahoe owner. She said small businesses drown as costs go up.
“Successful businesses are at a tipping point,” explained Santane. “We have to start doing something radically.”