With large conferences cancelled due to COVID-19, CCR Solutions, an audio visual and staging company, figured out a way to stay in business by manufacturing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), hand sanitizer and other products needed during the pandemic. The upside being that many of these products will be needed when large events return in the future.

Listen to Bill Guest, CEO, Adam Michelin, National Account Manager and Bob March, Director of Sales, tell the CCR Solutions story.

Bill: Twenty five years ago, I started the company in my garage, if you can believe it. We reached the point where we had five offices and hundreds of employees, [and we were] having the best year ever. Then COVID hit and all large conferences were cancelled.

Adam: CCR Solutions is an audio visual and staging company. Our business went to zero pretty much overnight. It's been pretty difficult for us. I have to credit our senior management team for getting together, and figuring out a way for us to stay in business and stay working. Not only [did they figure out how to] bring in revenue for the company, but [how] to do good for the community. Our transition to making and selling PPE products has had a dual effect. [It has] allowed us to stay viable as a company, but more importantly, [it has allowed us to] help people where we could.

Bob: Some of the biggest adjustments that we had to make was bringing our team up to speed as quickly as possible. We [needed to] get away temporarily from being the masters of audio visual production staging to becoming the masters of selling PPE products. It really came down to a simple question. Do we want to be part of the problem or do we want to be part of the solution? It is an absolutely incredible feeling to get the overwhelmingly positive response that we've been getting from virtually everyone we speak to relative to our story and the quick transition that we've made.

Adam: The feedback has been tremendous. Our current customers, all of whom do not have any events right now, are unsure about when their events are going to return. They're actually talking to us about these new products. The sanitizer, the stands, the face shields, all these [products] are going to be needed when those events return in the future, and we are helping them plan for that future. It's pretty exciting.

Bob: We know that with every challenge in life, you need to make a decision. You can deal with the challenge head on, or you can ignore it. You can make excuses and hope that someone else does it. For us it's all about making a difference and rolling up our sleeves. [That way] on the back end, we come out better not only as a business but as human beings.