Brewing a recovery plan

"We have a huge frozen food storage area that is stocked with vegetables. I reckon we have enough raw food to sustain us for half a year," she says.

On the other hand, the situation at the other companies within the zone has been grim.

According to Jin Xuhui, manager of Yunjian Cultural and Creative Park, the zone had only prepared enough supplies to sustain the tenants for a week, which was the initial duration of the lockdown.

After learning of this, Zhang readily gave out food. Over the past few weeks, the Beer Lady outlet has provided meals to hundreds of workers from companies in the Yunjian Granary. At times even 50 to 60 people have eaten together at a long table in the store. Zhang refuses to charge for the food and beer, though she accepts a token sum from those who insist on payment. She also has not considered selling her food through group purchases, which have for many people become the norm for procuring groceries during the lockdown.

"I don't want to talk about earning money during these difficult times. If our neighbors who dine here insist on paying, I only charge them the cost price," she says.

"In terms of group buying, transportation costs have spiked, making it much more expensive to procure goods. Besides, there's also the risk of spreading the virus through deliveries.

"Trying to turn a profit on the back of people's woes is against my principles. I just want to run my business in a down-to-earth manner. The more difficult the times are, the more responsible entrepreneurs should be," she adds.

Despite the current circumstances, Zhang has chosen to focus on her positive experiences. She says she is grateful that the district government has provided several months' worth of rent exemption for companies in the area. She is also planning to hold a crayfish and beer festival in the summer to inject life into the market and help the city get back on its feet. But that's not to say that Zhang doesn't have her fair share of problems. One of her biggest problems at the moment is something that, again, beer lovers might like to help her out with－many of her beers are nearing their expiration date.

She says: "What should we do with all this beer that is stuck in storage and cannot be sold? I guess we'll just drink it!"