By Jacqueline Pitts, The Bottom Line
FRANKFORT, Ky. — While Kentucky is recovering, reopening and rebuilding in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, businesses are looking for ways to reopen their doors and adapt to ensure safety is at the forefront for Kentuckians and its visitors.
The hospitality industry, one of Kentucky’s key economic drivers, was the first impacted and has been one of the hardest hit by this pandemic, Visit Lex President Mary Quinn Ramer told The Bottom Line in a recent interview. At the beginning of March, there were 15 million people employed in the hospitality industry in the United States, and that number was almost cut in half by the end of May. In Kentucky, almost three-fourths of the hospitality industry have been laid off or furloughed, Ramer said.
As many of Kentucky’s tourism attractions are already open or are set to reopen in July, Ramer said safety and cleanliness are the top priorities for their employees and visitors. Kentucky is at an advantage with its many outdoor attractions.
“I think we’re really going to play to the fact that we have wide-open spaces, we have a state that is just abundant with natural resources, natural beauty, tons of outdoor adventure … And so, I think we’ve got a lot that we can leverage in the first wave of this recovery.”
Watch the full interview with Ramer here:
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