Title Page & Abstract
An Interview with Rob Karr
Part of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library
TUMULTUOUS 2020 Oral History project
Interview # T20-A-L-2022-47
Rob Karr, President and CEO of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association about the challenges faced during the Covid-19 Pandemic, was interviewed on the date listed below as part of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library’s Tumultuous 2020 Oral History project.
Interview dates & location:
Date: June 27, 2022 at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library
Interview Format: Digital audio
Interviewer: Philip Pogue
Technical Support (cameraman, etc):
The interview(s) is/are archived at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library in Springfield, Illinois.
© 2021 Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library
Rob Karr, President and CEO of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association, discusses how the COVID-19 Pandemic impacted his members from mid March 2020-June 2022.
Abstract
Rob Karr- Tumultuous 2020
Biographical Information Overview of Interview:
Rob Karr, born in Chicago in 1967, grew up in Jacksonville, Illinois, and graduated from Jacksonville High School in 1985. He played soccer in high school and later at Illinois College before transferring to Illinois State University, where he majored in Political Science. After college, Rob worked as a lobbyist for the Illinois Retail Merchants Association (IRMA), eventually becoming its Vice President and, in 2014, its CEO and President. He has also served as a legislative coordinator for the Illinois Food Retailers Association and the Midwest Hardware Association. Additionally, he sits on several advisory boards, including those for Employment Security, Workers' Compensation, and Food Safety.
This interview explores the challenges faced by Illinois retailers during COVID-19 from the perspective of IRMA’s President. It discusses the Association’s preparations in early 2020 before retail restrictions began in March. Topics include differences between grocery and shoe stores, brick-and-mortar vs. online stores, and urban vs. rural locations. The conversation covers communication with the Governor’s office, safety measures (e.g., spacing, PPE, air filtration, and store hours), and the role of vaccinations in reopening businesses. State and federal grants, along with other pandemic challenges such as wage increases, worker shortages, supply chain issues, and mask mandates, are reviewed. The interview also addresses regulatory flexibility, such as changes in store hours and driver restrictions, and the personal impact of the pandemic on retailers.
Subject Headings/Key Words:
1 ) Description of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association
2) Impact of the Pandemic on Illinois Retailers (March 2020-June 2022)
3) Importance of the retail economy to Illinois
4) Challenges faced during the pandemic (supply chains, fuel costs, businesses considered nonessential, restrictions on store traffic, customer shopping habit changed, property taxes, consumer food adjustments, worker availability, & salary/benefit increases)
5) Funding assistance from the federal & state government
6) Legislative Objectives of the Illinois Retail Merchant Association (IRMA)
7) Types of calls to IRMA from its members
8) Communications with the Governor’s Office
9) How is Retail doing in 2022
Note to the Reader: Readers of the oral history memoir should bear in mind that this is a transcript of the spoken word, and that the interviewer, interviewee and editor sought to preserve the informal, conversational style that is inherent in such historical sources. The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library is not responsible for the factual accuracy of the memoir, nor for the views expressed therein. We leave these for the reader to judge.
COPYRIGHT
The following material can be used for educational and other non-commercial purposes without the written permission of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library. “Fair use” criteria of Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976 must be followed. These materials are not to be deposited in other repositories, nor used for resale or commercial purposes without the authorization from the Audio-Visual Curator at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library, 112 N. 6th Street, Springfield, Illinois 62701. Telephone (217) 785-7955