AUSTIN, Texas -- From outside, Vulcan Video looks like any movie rental store, but to Austin Film Society's Lars Nilsen, this is where his love and expertise of film was forged.
- Vulcan Video has been open for 35 years
- Financially hit hard during coronavirus pandemic
“I often said that Vulcan Video was my film school," he said. "It wasn’t just a place where there’s tons and tons of tapes, and you could go in and rent stuff. Everyone who works there were super cool and knew their stuff.”
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The knowledge was powerful enough for Nilsen to pursue a career in the movie industry.
“When I started like, when I became a film programmer and started cutting pre-show materials for Alamo Drafthouse, which I did years ago, I would go there quite a lot," he recalled. “All those little clips that you see at Alamo Drafthouse before the film, a lot of them I got from Vulcan’s stock.”
But his love for the store was not naive, especially when the world went digital.
“The writing was on the wall towards the end there, even for myself, a big power user of all different kinds of stuff,” Nilsen shrugged.
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After 35 years, Vulcan Video has closed for good, hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. It’s a common fear among small businesses, for even local icons are not immune.
“We expected to get a hit," said Austin Chamber of Commerce's Craig Enoch. "I mean, I don’t really recall any time in history—certainly not in this country’s history—where the government came in and started ordering shutdowns.”
An image of people's return videos at Vulcan Video with written "goodbye" notes and a yellow rose (Spectrum News)
“In our current economic conditions right now, with no assistance from Congress, it’s the end of the road for these businesses,” said National Federation of Independent Business' Annie Spilman.
The federal government launched small business bailout plans, including the Paycheck Protection Plan and the CARES Act—which promised to pay back 50 percent payroll tax credit to businesses affected by the coronavirus.
But Spilman said, there's a problem.
“If the small business takes advantage of this paycheck protection loan, they cannot apply for that tax credit," she explained. "Keep in mind that paycheck protection loan only covers costs during an eight-week period, from February 15 to June 30.”
As those in power work to fill in the gaps, business experts are optimistic Texas entrepreneurs will regain their economic footing.
“I remain very confident that, even if a company says they’re shutting their doors for good, the person who headed that company is an entrepreneur," said Enoch. "The person who headed the company had a great idea, and you can’t just hold those kind of folks down.”
“With that one candle extinguished, it doesn’t mean that flame’s gone out. It’ll spread evermore widely," Nilsen said. "We’re gonna go out in the world and continue that flame that Vulcan Video lit in us.”