Palos Business Guide: What’s Open or Closed in Palos

PALOS, IL — The coronavirus is having a profound impact on the global economy, and has been particularly damaging to local businesses that depend on foot-traffic and in-person interactions with their customers. Even so, many businesses have found ways to stay open and to offer delivery, pick-up and safe-distance transactions to serve the community.

We put a call out to local businesses on Patch this week and asked them to update their status, give details on how you can continue to patronize them and to let the community know how they can best help during these challenging times. You can find the Palos guide here.

If you own a local business and have not yet updated your status, you can find a simple submission form here or simply scroll down to the bottom of this article.

Cathy O’Hara, owner of O’Hara and Friends Salon, 7008 W 127th St., Palos Heights, is closed for the duration of the Illinois’s coronavirus shutdown. She goes to her salon every day to check the shop and cancel appointments that have been on the books for months. O’Hara always ends up chatting with the quarantined who answer the phone.

“Everyone wants to talk to me and get reassurance,” O’Hara laughs. “It can take a whole day.”

She’s applied for the various government grants and loans to give her stylists some money to see them through the shutdown. When salons and barber shops are given the all clear sign to open again, O’Hara plans to keep the salon open seven days a week, instead of her usual six, for all the clients who’ll want to get their quarantine hair done.

“I’m not sitting back and say, ‘fend for yourself,’” O’Hara said. “When you treat people right they’ll want to come back and work harder. It boosts morale.”

We’re going to keep this guide live throughout the impact of the coronavirus, to help our readers support the businesses that serve Palos Hills, Palos Heights and Palos Park. Businesses can update their status in the guide at any time. To help support our local merchants and business owners, we encourage you to share this article or the link to the guide with neighbors, via email and social media. The businesses need our support.

Patch will be rolling out a number of new initiatives and resources to help local business owners in the coming days, so stay tuned and please stay safe.

If you’re a Palos business owner who has not yet listed your status in our guide, please fill out the following form: