Mixed Methods Study to Explore the Portrait of Micro and Small Enterprises in Semarang City During the Covid-19 Pandemic

Abstract

This study aims to explore the portrait of SMEs during and after the Covid-19 pandemic. The respondents are more than 500 SME actors in Semarang City. Data are collected and analysed by a mixed method. The results show that the SMEs have very various types of business. The length of running business also varies. Many millennials are involved in this sector. The initial capital they use is very varied. The income they receive is also very volatile. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, they generally admit that their income tends to increase relatively. However, during the Covid-19 pandemic, most of them experienced a sharp decline in results. The contributing factor that they conveyed was the existence of a government policy. This research finds that some catering businesses experienced an increased income. A type of business that uses social media assistance has also increased rapidly during the Covid-19 pandemic. This research also finds that most of the SME actors don't receive crisis assistance through various programs. The reason is that they lack access to information. Some of these results confirm the findings of previous studies. However, most of the findings are recognized as initial embryos to be investigated further in future research.