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The situation remains complicated in the country’s ports, which are still congested. Delays in deliveries are piling up, the supply chain remains disrupted. And at the end of the chain, small stores and consumers are trying to organize themselves as well as possible for the end of the year celebrations. Loubna Anaki went to meet impatient gift buyers at the end of November.
From our correspondent in New York,
In the famous Macy’s store, many have already started shopping for the holidays: “ If you want to have it all on time, you have to start long before. At least two weeks in advance. “” We are receiving everything late today and there are products that are blocked in transport! »
Products stuck en route, Christie knows a thing or two. She ordered kitchen knives for a birthday present and she is still waiting: ” I ordered mid-October to have it at the end of October. And it’s on a freighter somewhere. The store calls me every week to say “It will happen!”. It’s now late November and it probably won’t happen before Christmas. “Christie says she warned her friend that she will have to be patient:” I can’t just call and cancel and say I’ll get the knives somewhere else. They are nowhere. »
Because these delays do not only affect individuals. Stores are also suffering. They are due to blockages in the ports. There are not enough truckers and employees to move everything. And despite the government’s best efforts, it will take time for the supply chain to return to normal.
“This is one of the effects of Covid-19”
« Three to five times a week, I receive an email from my suppliers telling me: “We have supply problems, thank you for being patient while we resolve the problem”, says Charles Branstool, who runs a shop in the East Village. I’ve never seen this: even my suppliers don’t know when they’ll get the products. Charles says he had to replace some of his flagship brands with others to avoid having empty shelves.
In Harlem, Grandma Dawn had taken the lead in getting her toy store ready for the holidays. She started placing orders in June: “ Everything we are used to ordering, we ordered in duplicate, telling us that it would hold us until December. I stored everything at home, in my cellar, in several rooms of my house. We have everything we need for online sales and for the store. »
After two seasons disrupted by the health crisis, stores hope that these supply problems will not disrupt their sales targets too much. Especially after two seasons affected by the health crisis.
Especially since some believe that the most important stockouts are still to come. Just one piece of advice, according to Charles Branstool: “ If there is one thing that you absolutely want to buy, then go ahead ASAP and buy it before it’s gone. »
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