At a tiny gelato shop in Helotes, the “OPEN” sign is dimmed. So is business. “The truth is, we may not survive,” said Isaac Butler, co-owner of Congelato. He opened the quaint little shop six years ago. It survived the COVID-19 pandemic. Inflation is killing it. “The cost of production and stocking gelato rose up by about 25% to 30%,” he said. “That’s coinciding with the time, with our sales down 25% to 50%.” Cash is in short supply, so he can only afford to open his doors on weekends for now. “Being mom and pop, we’re totally self-funded, no banks involved. And so it’s really difficult for us to generate financial resources when in times of need,” Butler said. His struggles are familiar to entrepreneurs whose dreams have been turned upside down, first by the pandemic, then the COVID economy. Supply chain snags, difficulties hiring qualified and willing workers, and rising costs of rents, insurance, labor and their products have brought one whammy after another.