Fox Business recently featured a story on the economic impact of the recent pandemic on the tour bus industry. And who better to discuss this than Hemphill Brothers Coach Company?

The tour bus industry relies heavily on large tours playing large concerts to large numbers of people. But the pandemic has cancelled large shows worldwide for an unknown amount of time. This has resulted in massive losses for the tour bus industry. In fact, between 80 and 95 percent of tour bus trips have been cancelled since mid-March. This translates to a massive $4.8 billion loss.

Hemphill Brothers might be the top tour bus provider, but that doesn’t mean we’re immune from the collapse of the live entertainment industry. Fox Business reports on our need to furlough almost all of our 150 drivers while the company attempts to operate on a mere 5% of its former revenue. Hemphill is considering options about how to shift our services to possibly include more public rides.

The country is slowly starting to open back up. However, the restrictions such as social distancing won’t allow for a quick return to the practices that once drove the industry. Half-full buses won’t provide the same return as they did in the past. This means the industry is looking at a three- to four-year recovery.

The pandemic has had drastic effects on the tour bus industry as a whole. Fox Business highlights how the $15 billion industry with 112,000 workers has experienced a steep economic downturn. Hemphill Brothers Coach Company is possibly best-positioned to navigate the uncertain future of the tour bus industry, which might be why Fox Business sought our story to highlight the difficulties of this time.