The irony of a global pandemic, where people have been put on furlough and made to stay at home more has seen a huge increase in demand across all sectors of outdoor recreation (not just surfing and wetsuits). Further to this is the fact that whilst there’s money to part with for goods said goods are becoming even harder to get hold of for retailers. You could well have all the money in the world for that shiny new watersports toy, and plenty of scope to get out and use it, but if the actual product (or products) aren’t available then it kind of goes out the window.
Plenty of reasons exist as to why we’re in this situation. COVID’s played its part with manufacturers having to lay off their staff due to infection. This then clogged up the delivery pipeline with order slots missed. Suppliers to the manufactures have also been impacted meaning further stalls in the supply chain. Then there was the Suez Canal debacle which impacted things even more. With already snarled up UK ports, where container ships had no way of getting into dock and offload, this caused more issue to the point some delivery ships turned around and went elsewhere. Importers/distributors have then had to pay through the odds in getting a new time slot which has been a considerable wait. Shipping container costs have, in many cases, gone up ten fold in 18 months! This ultimately knocked on (and still does) to retailers. Overland delivery and air freight haven’t gotten away Scot free either with borders and airports being closed because of COVID and so on…It’s all affected things.
As it stands now there are huge supply vs demand issues across most sectors. Domestic factors, such as a lack of delivery drivers, is only adding to the mix. It’s a real headache for everyone: the consumer, the seller and right back down the chain.
NCW has weathered the storm surprisingly well, considering. That’s not to say we haven’t faced our own struggles – we have! We only hope things start to ease moving forwards. Staying optimistic is what we’re all about although we ask our customers to be patient as everyone’s in the same situation and all concerned are doing their level best to make the scenario as bearable as possible. We’re always open and honest here at the Rubber Shack so if something’s not available, or we’re having trouble getting hold of it, we’ll let you know – communication is, after all, key. Hence the reason for this update.
Thanks to everyone for their continued support. Keep the faith and stay wet!