The sudden closing of Oak Hall’s store due to coronavirus only reaffirmed president Will Levy’s prior thinking.

When given the choice, people will always choose to work. But there are unprecedented circumstances in this lesson.

Of course, a clothing store that cannot sell clothes is certainly not one that can be successful. That goes especially for a clothing store that often uses tailors and provides high-quality and sometimes high-price products.

The newly revamped online store, OakHall.com, only makes up a small portion of usual sales.

If it weren’t for the Paycheck Protection Program, which provides a loan to small businesses to keep all employees on payroll, it would have been extremely difficult — if not impossible — for the store to avoid letting employees go.

So far, everything seems to be working out.

“We applied (for the loan) and have been approved,” Levy said. “We hope to be funded (this) week. We feel very fortunate it has worked out that way. It is very challenging when your sales drop 90% and you still have to try to make payroll every week.”

But even after receiving positive news, there was still a void in the days the store was supposed to be closed with limited employees inside. 

That’s when his wife, Brooke Levy, came up with a plan.

“We had all these materials and all this fabric, so I thought, ‘Why don’t we use it to put people to work and start making these masks?’” Brooke Levy said. “I knew people were looking for them.”

The experiment to see if it could work started last Saturday, and it didn’t take long before they determined it was a possibility.

“I think around that time Church Health sent a message to their employees saying to source their own masks, and it was around the time that the CDC recommended that everyone wear a mask,” Will Levy said. “So, we started to make them and retooled our shop (to meet health requirements).

“That’s when we also realized we could make a difference. … We pitched the idea (to donate a mask for every mask sold) to Church Health, and they were excited. Then we just put them up.”

The store made the masks available for purchase for $20 on the website, and the not-for-profit project had 1,200 orders within the first 12 hours. 

“People bought them mainly as a benefit for Church Health,” Will Levy said. “But I think they also realized it was a way to keep people working, and anything that helps Memphis helps everybody.”

The rush of support was fantastic, except for the fact that the tailors who returned to the store to create masks were still figuring out how to produce the brand-new product at a rapid rate.

It was a first-time experience for everyone.

“The first day we made like 27, then the next day we made a little over 100, and then 200, and now our goal is to make 300 a day,” Will Levy said.

As different “prototypes,” were developed, it quickly sped up the process. The first 1,200-plus masks have already been donated to Church Health, and the following 1,200-plus are expected to start going out to customers this week.

In the meantime, even more prototypes are in the works.

“The first masks had binding tape on the side, but all the stores were sold out of that,” Brooke Levy said. “So, then we made a new one that was similar. What we are doing is taking damaged shirts from Vineyard Vines and Oak Hall and using a template to cut out pieces.”

From there the fabric goes to an assembly line of tailors, where it is steamed, flipped inside-out and sewed with an elastic band.

“Now the problem is that we are running out of elastic,” Brooke Levy said. “We’ve been to every store in the city, and we’ve been online, but they are sold out everywhere. We have some more that will get here in May.”

With Church Health in mind, however, Will Levy insists they will continue to find a way to keep it going.

“We have just been using what we have and making do,” Brooke added. “We will be resourceful.”

Because that’s the best scenario for everyone, including a staff that wants to keep pushing forward even if the store cannot reopen just yet.

“To be honest, the people were making the same amount of money staying home,” Will Levy said. “They were getting paid and still had benefits. But now, they can come to work and make masks. They want to come to work and make masks. Our tailors want to make a difference.”

“In times when I feel stressed or worried about the store closing, I always find it better to ask, ‘Who can I help?’ ” Brooke Levy said. “It’s an instant mood booster for everyone when we are feeling down. By helping other people, we are making ourselves feel better in the process.”