Running interference to make sure that customers coming into the equine tack shop are properly sanitized and masked is just one way that Nafshi’s workday has changed since the pandemic took hold. The Trainer’s Loft, which also sells animal feed, was deemed an essential business and able to stay open throughout the stay-at-home order, so Nafshi began requiring staff and customers to wear masks early on.

For some customers, that was an inconvenience. In the spring, when the shop was only doing curbside pickup at the loading dock, Nafshi spent about 20 minutes on the phone with a potential customer, discussing the type of chicken feed the woman needed and running through various options. At the end of the call, the woman asked if The Trainer’s Loft required masks. Nafshi explained that she did, but the woman wouldn’t actually be coming into the store, since this was a curbside pickup order.