Need a job? These booming businesses could be hiring during coronavirus

Looking for a job? A new report from Yelp indicates which businesses near you are booming—and likely hiring.

Yelp tracks consumer interest (page views, reviews, photo posts) for millions of businesses. Here are the most active shops and services around, all worth calling:

CSAs: Community supported agriculture businesses (typically farm-to-doorstep veggie deliveries) are up a whopping 579%.
Tobacco shops, cannabis clinics, and vape shops: All up double.
Grocery and/or produce stores: Up 123%.
Cosmetics stores: Up nearly triple as people seek home-beauty regimens.
Gun and rifle ranges: Up 269%.
Butchers: Up double.
Order-out restaurants: Order out is replacing dining in. Particularly popular are chicken-wing places and pizzerias, with nearly doubled interest.
Exercise equipment stores: Up 424%.
Pet breeders: Up nearly quadruple.
Firewood services: Up nearly triple.
TV service providers: Up by 52%.
Insurance businesses: Life, auto, home, rental are up by a quarter.

Know that now is the time to call. Early in any downturn, customer habits shift quickly, as, for example, newly unemployed people begin to frequent budget grocers and stores. The newly popular businesses hire swiftly over a few weeks, creating many new jobs and the best rehiring opportunities of the recession. This means that the coming weeks are likely the ideal time to get rehired.

Note that Yelp only tracks consumer-facing businesses, and so related behind-the-scenes opportunities, such as grocer supply chains and CSA farms, are not noted here.

Side note: Ameri-Force is also hiring. It typically builds Navy ships, which includes interesting positions such as Fire Watcher. In the coming weeks, it will be filling a range of pandemic-related positions such as temperature takers and medical assistants.