5G technology helping Massachusetts companies rebound after pandemic

HINGHAM, Mass. — The clothing racks are spinning again at Dependable Cleaners in Hingham, after losing 90% of their business when Covid first hit.

“It really took a village to get through the last few years, we knew that we needed help,” said company president Christa Hagearty. She tells Boston 25 News her company pivoted quickly to use technology to stay in operation then, and that same technology is giving her business an edge now: from automated 24-7 kiosks, to 5G wireless connectivity.

“It allowed us complete flexibility when we never knew what was going to happen the next day,” Hagearty said.

That flexibility is helping more small businesses in our area rebound according to Verizon Business Markets President Aparna Khurjekar

“The companies that have embraced technologies in the right way…are the ones that have not just survived, but thrived beyond the pandemic,” Khurjekar said. She explained how Verizon is cultivating new technology at its Innovation Center near Boston’s waterfront, where the focus is on 5G.

“5g is the playground and the opportunities are enormous,” Khurjekar said.

She says the move to 5G is like multiplying the lanes on a highway tenfold. According to Khurjekar, the increase in speed will allow smaller businesses to adopt big innovations like augmented reality and virtual reality for everything from training employees to improving customer experience.

At Dependable Cleaners, Hagearty says 5G is allowing them to cut the cable and stay connected even if the internet goes down. “With this as a backup in our stores or as our primary we will have less downage time because it’s wireless,” she said.

Hagearty says she believes the investment in technology was worth it because it allowed them to keep all of their employees on staff and to stand out from the competition.

“Which also helps us to become more efficient, which also helps the speed of which we can return the clothes to our clients, which in this world, that’s unpredictable. I think that’s more important than ever,” Hagearty said.

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