Three Lansing businesses that emerged from the pandemic 

Lives and livelihoods were forever changed by the pandemic. Small businesses were notably hit hard because of various shutdowns and orders. Yet amid the loss and uncertainty of the past two years, businesses still found ways to flourish and grow.  

Although it’s been extremely difficult for economists to estimate the exact number and percentage of permanently closed small businesses, the fact checkers at PolitiFact confirmed that nearly a third of small businesses closed nationwide.  

Yet, people still took the chance to open or expand businesses over the last couple of years. Here are three Lansing-area businesses that opened their doors since the pandemic’s start.  

Square One Breakfast and Bakery 

Located in Hannah Plaza on Hagadorn Road in East Lansing is Square One Breakfast and Bakery. The restaurant is described on its website as “the place where great cooking and fantastic vibes meet” and the workers “welcome diners young and old.”  

The breakfast and lunch spot serves up classics like strawberry stuffed French toast, as well as specialty dishes like the Hot Karl breakfast sandwich — house-blended sausage, egg, cheddar cheese, grilled onions and green peppers served on the customer’s choice of bread.  

After 10 years of planning, owner Ellen Leonard opened Square One in August 2021. In March 2020, she had been in lease negotiations for a different location, which she is thankful she didn’t sign for. 

“I was very apprehensive about the pandemic and economy, but I felt like the time was right and this was my shot,” Leonard said. “I kept moving forward.”  

Leonard said the pandemic created many challenges, especially with the rising cost of food and labor shortages. The stresses “made an already difficult industry even more challenging, with no end in sight.” The restaurant was a disaster at first, and it took more work than Leonard anticipated. She was able to open Square One five months after signing the lease for its location in Hannah Plaza.  

The restaurant industry was hit hard and lost a lot of workers since the pandemic first started. Leonard said she is “blessed” with her “incredible staff” that she hired in the midst of a labor shortage. She is thankful for her workers, and she is thankful for the “incredible and supportive” customers who have given the restaurant a shot — Leonard said, as a small business owner, it makes such a difference when people give Square One a try.  

“Running a restaurant takes grit, pandemic or not,” Leonard said. “It’s an industry that I love and am passionate about.”   

Onyx Nail Bar 

Dymond Brown was working as a solo nail technician for three years and saw a jump in clientele after the pandemic shutdowns. Brown said her first days open post-shutdowns made her a lot of money, but it was difficult to accommodate the growing number of customers by herself.  

Last October, after hiring workers and moving to a bigger space, Brown welcomed new and old customers into Onyx Nail Bar, on the west side, with open arms — and a fresh set of nails. 

Brown — going into her fifth year as a nail tech — now has four nail technicians, an esthetician and a lash artist working along with her at Onyx, 3203 W. Saginaw St. The salon offers various nail and spa services — from simple polish changes to exotic freestyle sets.  

The highest priority, Brown said, is to provide customers with outstanding services in a comfortable environment. Before starting her own business, Brown noticed unfavorable trends in other nail salons where she worked.  

“My goal was to make more money and work with other people,” she said. “The biggest thing, for me, was to have a nail salon run the right way. A lot of times, you run into nail salons that are not sanitary, are not friendly and can’t hold a nice conversation with customers.” 

Before opening Onyx Nail Bar, Brown received a Paycheck Protection Program loan for $6,280 in April 2021. The status reads “paid in full or forgiven” on FederalPay’s website. The PPP loan, according to the website, was used for Brown’s payroll and utility expenses. Brown also credited unemployment for helping her stay afloat during the shutdowns.  

Although everything isn’t about money for Brown, she said that the pandemic shutdowns helped grow her business. Brown added that Onyx Nail Bar is the first Black-owned nail salon in the area that accepts walk-ins every day. 

“Most minority owned businesses are by appointment only,” she said. “Now, we can take walk-ins at any given time. That was another goal.”  

She is taking steps toward making her business to be the number one nail salon in Lansing.   

Social Sloth Cafe & Bakery  

After pushing back the April opening date of their cafe, Social Sloth Cafe & Bakery, Burcay Gunguler and her husband, Aybars, finally opened their doors in late August 2020.  

They had hoped for lots of business from people who worked downtown, especially those working for the state, but that wasn’t the case. A few months after opening the cafe, a second shutdown drastically slowed business. 

“We didn’t want to give up, because we made an investment,” Gunguler said. “We had already bought lots of things, made arrangements with the wholesalers.” 

“When you give up that chain, everything is ruined.”  

They used the power of social media to promote their downtown Lansing business at 301 S. Washington Square, Suite 100. The Gungulers use the hashtag “Let’s hang together” to boost online engagement. 

The second shutdown lasted from mid-November 2020 through the start of February 2021. During that time, the cafe offered curbside pickup and takeout options — including holiday meals — of its Turkish-inspired dishes. 

“When you make things in good quality and people are really open-minded to taste different things, it makes the change,” Gunguler said.  

Gunguler credited the cafe’s regulars for helping spread the word about the sloth-themed spot. She said Social Sloth is the only place around cooking up traditional Turkish eats  — like kumru and pogaca. Although their menu setup at the time was not ideal for takeout, the couple made it work.  

One lesson Gunguler said she’s learned since the start of the pandemic is that “crisis always happens in businesses.”  

“You are supposed to make the negative into a positive,” she said. “Of course, you have different scenarios, but this was worldwide — not only about you.”  

Now that things are returning to a new normal, Gunguler explained how the cafe is offering cooking classes and Instagram live videos. Cooking classes are held in-person at the cafe. The Instagram live video series, titled Food Talks, is once monthly. The most recent Food Talks — hosted by Gunguler’s chef husband — featured a chef from Paris.  

Even as a new business, Social Sloth became an established Lansing business — winning the award for best bakery in City Pulse’s 2021 Top of the Town awards.  

Square One Breakfast and Bakery 

4790 Hagadorn Rd., Suite 110, East Lansing 

6 a.m. – 3 p.m. Monday – Friday  

8 a.m. – 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday 

(517) 203-5305 

 Onyx Nail Bar 

3203 W. Saginaw St., Lansing 

9 a.m. – 7 p.m. Tuesday – Friday 

9 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. Saturday  

Closed Sunday 

(517) 243-1752 

Social Sloth Cafe 

301 S. Washington Square, Suite 100, Lansing 

9 a.m. – 4 p.m. Monday – Friday 

9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Saturday 

Closed Sunday 

(517) 253-0240