A year ago, Hurricane Helene devastated Western North Carolina. Nearly every small business in the region was affected. Today, as recovery continues, these entrepreneurs—our neighbors—are still carrying the weight of those losses.
In the aftermath, many of the small businesses that enrich our lives became heroes. They served free meals for neighbors, set up resource stations, opened lodging for first responders, and helped each other clean up, clear out, and survive the devastating days post-disaster.
In our 2025 Local Business Impact Survey, one business shared, “We didn’t have clean water or power for weeks after the hurricane. We didn’t have the ability to reopen due to lack of water for seven weeks…we used all of our money to pay our bills and feed our community for free for weeks out of our food truck.” This is just one example of many.
Now, one year later, small businesses—key to both Western North Carolina’s economy and a big part of what makes this a great place to live—need our help to survive long term. And they’ve told us what they need to recover stronger.
One Year Later: The Storm’s Impact
The Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina estimates $1.8 billion in revenue losses for businesses in the last three months of 2024. That’s on top of $3 billion in physical losses they suffered.
These numbers are at a scale that’s hard to conceptualize in our rural region. But they aren’t conceptual. These numbers represent our real neighbors: the small businesses we love and the people behind them.
I recently heard from Connie Molland, owner of Flow Gallery in Marshall, which reopened six months post-Helene. Like so many businesses in WNC, 40% of her annual sales typically happen October 1 – December 31—time lost in 2024.
Connie is hopeful for this fall season. She credits Flow Gallery’s neighbors for getting them where they are: “Our town worked together to rebuild and we would not have been able to reopen had it not been for the amazing volunteer support that continues today.”
Amazingly, 93% of survey respondents said their small businesses are now open. However, revenue for over half of these are still more than 20% below pre-Helene levels. And if you look at impact in proportion to revenue, it would take the average business over six years-worth of profits to cover their Helene losses.
To counter this, Mountain BizWorks—with funding from the Golden LEAF Foundation, NC General Assembly, Appalachian Regional Commission, and Abundance Capital—deployed $47 million in rapid relief loan funding over the past year. Those 800 loans (and counting) helped save 6,500 jobs across WNC. In addition, the Small Business Administration’s combined disaster business loan programs offered the region $243.8 million in funding.
Grants have also been a key factor in business recovery, especially for those already burdened with loans from the COVID-19 pandemic. Across at least a dozen grant programs in the region, more than 3,500 entrepreneurs received direct infusions into their businesses—totaling $66.4 million. However, the $350 million in combined relief funding is still a far cry from the nearly $5 billion in total losses.
Flexible, affordable loan capital and grant funding have been instrumental in the recovery progress we’ve made thus far as a region. And yet, we’re not finished. We just announced gifts of $1.4 million from the North Carolina Community Foundation (NCCF) and $180,000 from Appalachian Community Capital, plus a $2 million recovery loan capital from Bank of America will address ongoing small business resilience needs. The funding will support a two year WNC Strong: Recover Forward commitment, including a round of small business grants this fall, scholarships for business courses and coaching, and flexible recovery financing.
Mountain BizWorks is proud to work with partners to support Asheville and rural surrounding communities, building long-term recovery support with our region’s needs in mind. We need to continue offering small businesses paths to recovery with appropriate relief.
Looking Ahead: What Recovery Needs Now
Now is a critical time in WNC’s recovery. A recent federal funding request presented by Governor Josh Stein shows that the federal response to Hurricane Helene falls far below other comparable disasters. For example, federal funding covered 73% of Hurricane Katrina’s total damage, whereas Western North Carolina has received only 9% of total losses from Hurricane Helene.
We also can’t ignore the number of businesses that fail to recover from a disaster. According to FEMA, 40% of businesses do not reopen after a disaster, and another 25% close a year after the disaster. They also indicate that 75% of businesses without a continuity plan fail three years after a disaster. However, this reality must be tempered with hope.
As we reach this one-year milestone, we recognize the profound physical and economic changes across our region—and the incredible resilience of our communities. Because of regional support, a new grocery store is opening in a food desert created by storm damage, a manufacturing business was able to open in a town desperate for jobs, and a new restaurant recently opened in a location previously shuttered by the storm. With additional investment, more stories like these are possible.
We must continue to listen to our local businesses who are clearly sharing what they need in the months and years ahead. Responses from our 2025 Local Business Impact Survey identified needs around flexible and forgivable capital, affordable commercial space, strong business support networks, repaired infrastructure, and an amplified message that WNC is open for business.
And speaking of open, DT’s Blue Ridge Java, a coffee shop and café in Spruce Pine, reopened in late August after 11 months. Owners Tricia and David Niven told us, “Our first week back was incredibly busy, with a line to the door from open until close, and it reminded us just how much we were missed.”
Like others, they continue to navigate a new reality: “While we’re grateful to be open again, we’re still navigating the challenges of being a newly rebuilt business and managing the costs of recovery and rebuilding,” said Tricia and David. “There’s still work to do behind the scenes to fully stabilize, but we’re approaching it with optimism and resilience.”
Recovery isn’t measured in months, but in years. Small businesses need flexible capital, affordable space, stronger networks, and investments in infrastructure. And they need our communities—residents, visitors, policymakers, funders—to keep showing up.
One year ago, local businesses came to our rescue. Now, they need us to come to theirs. Shop locally. Support boldly. Advocate for the policies and investments that will sustain recovery.
Together, Western North Carolina will recover forward.
Matt Raker
Executive Director, Mountain BizWorks
For more information about Mountain BizWorks, visit mountainbizworks.org. Connect with WNC Strong at wncstrongtogether.org.
Photo: Peter O’Leary, Mayor of Chimney Rock and owner of Bubba O’Leary’s General Store, and team shares rebuilding progress with Mountain BizWorks’ Executive Director Matt Raker.
