What does normal look like during a pandemic? For some fitness buffs in Redondo Beach, California, this photo sums it up: pumping iron in individual pods. Peet Sapsin, owner of Inspire South Bay Fitness, built the containers out of shower curtains and pipes so gym members could exercise without masks. 

The California gym isn’t the only business getting creative about how to keep customers and employees safe. Some restaurants in England and France are seating teddy bears at empty tables to ensure social distancing between diners. And grocery stores and malls around the U.S. are stepping up their sanitizing efforts by using robots to scrub and disinfect floors. 

Even with such measures, many businesses nationwide may face temporary closures as the rate of local Covid-19 cases rises and falls. Members of Sapsin’s gym applaud the new setup regardless. As one online reviewer noted, the “only thing missing from pre-Covid was the hi-fives.”