Kalamazoo Times

Southwest Michigan First's senior partner believes back-to-work will look a little different in the wake of COVID-19.

Ron Kitchens, the senior partner and chief executive officer at the consulting firm, said in an interview with morning anchor Lora Painter of WWMT that manufacturing is going to come back strongly and the auto industry will take about 60 days to get back up to speed.

"Areas that are going to be slow are restaurants and retail," Kitchens told the news agency. "We don't think they will come back until the fall, simply because of the national funding for unemployment."

Kitchens also said it will be a different world when things open back up.

"You're going to have personal protection devices and change, like a plastic shield or spaces marked on the floor; life is going to be different and it's going to morph," Kitchens said. "We won't know until we do it. Many companies are starting with soft openings to figure this out."

Kitchens said different people will have different sensitivities and that in his own firm, three of his employees are currently pregnant and they will likely not feel comfortable returning until after they've given birth.

"This is going to be a time of flexibility and opportunity to come together to make sure the economy doesn't stall any more than it already has," Kitchens told the news agency.

Kitchens said the sense of community has been important during this time.

"I forget how much we really all love each other and how passionate we are about our communities," Kitchens said during the interview. "We genuinely want each other to thrive."