So far this year, Tennesseans are spending half of what they did on tourism thanks to the COVID-19 outbreak, according to new data released on June 30 by the Tennessee Department of Tourism Development and the U.S. Travel Association. While more folks are expected to travel in the coming months and weeks, the drop in tourism spending has had dire effects on local tourist spots, like Bluff Creek Farms Bed and Breakfast in Ashland City.
Bluff Creek’s owners, Don and Marsha Borgeson, closed their bed and breakfast off Highway 49 West last month, after opening early in 2020. Marsha Borgeson said they are “making some changes that seem positive for us” in the wake of the closure, and they thank the community and the Cheatham County Chamber of Commerce for their support.
Borgeson explained that she has been finding inspiration in a motivational book for entrepreneurs by Spencer Johnson called Who Moved My Cheese?
“We’ve got to find that person that keeps moving our cheese. LOL. I have to read the book over and over to keep our heads up and moving forward. If your cheese gets moved, find different cheese somewhere else. That is what we are doing – again,” she said.
The couple has dealt with challenges before and overcome them. The Borgesons came up with the idea for the bed and breakfast after losing everything in Hurricane Michael in October 2018.
Don and Marsha are confident they will find a new opportunity once again, but it is just not clear where or when or how yet.
“This is our home, so we are not leaving – not yet anyway. We are just watching what is going on,” she said.
