Logistical Pause

So the good news is that toilet paper is back in stock almost everywhere.  The initial panic of the pandemic has started to subside and many businesses are starting to reopen in a responsible way.  However, we continue to hear about the possibility of a second wave.  Although we are hoping it never comes, we have already started to see a second wave of a different type.  Unnecessary consumer goods are starting to sell out everywhere.  Go to any major department store and you will see less merchandise and the reason why is painfully simple.  It takes months for consumer goods to make it to a stores shelf in the modern economy.

In the past everything was made locally.  You would have a cobbler make shoes for people in the neighborhood.  The local seamstress or tailor would make your clothing for you, and different types of trade artists would make anything from dining plates and glassware to storage pots and cooking pans.  The rise of the modern economy has drastically changed this.  Companies now rely on the business model of ordering in bulk and selling to large amounts of people.  Companies like Amazon and Walmart have been leaders of this way of selling.  Using common sizes and producing this way has made things much cheaper.  A tailor is not going to make you a generic tee shirt for a few dollars.  It simply isn’t worth their time.  Globalization has also played a huge factor in the way major company’s source their products to sell.  There is a reason things like clothing are made overseas.  It can be done for a far cheaper price and retailers can pass that savings on to you.  However, the virus is now starting to show the flaw in this system.

For companies to get the right product at the right time, orders must be placed far in advance.  Some people might think that means a few weeks; but the reality is that it takes 6-12 months for large overseas orders to hit shelves.  It all starts when a company designs a product.  They have a look or function in mind and want to bring it to reality.   The first thing to keep in mind is not all factories are the same.  So the American company who wants to produce a product must find a factory that can meet its quality expectations.  This is a key component because choosing a substandard factory will cause product delays and likely result in a subpar product that won’t sell, this could cause thousands of dollars in loss profits.   Once the factory situation is figured out the logistics of how to transport the product takes center stage.  Large orders typically ship via cargo ship.  This means there is travel time plus the time needed to unload the product, get it through customs, and get it to a distribution center.  Once this happens it can start making its way to the end user.

So must of us do not think about the logistics of how we buy a cheap item, but we are starting to see the effect the shutdown has had and will continue to have.  So when the economy first reopened there was enough back stock of consumer products around the country.  When stores sold out they simply got more from their distribution centers; however what many of us fail to realize is that the factories were also shut down.  This means that products were not being produced and shipped.  The immediate impact of this hardly noticed because there was enough to go around.  However, the situation has changed over the last few weeks.  With stores reopening, consumer items began to sell again, back stock supplies were taped, and the shelves remained full.  We have now hit the point where companies are waiting for their new orders from these overseas factories.  However there is some reassuring news.

There is nothing essential that we cannot get.  We live in a world of instant satisfaction, we pay for something and we want it now.  The way the economy works enabled this for years and we were spoiled by it.  However, we sometimes might have to wait to get what we want now.  We must learn to be patient again.  Not many of us need clothing, need new furniture, or need a new accessory.  We typically want them and can afford them so we buy them.   We must remember not to get mad when stores are out of items or items are backordered for a few weeks.  These items are material possessions and we must remember this.   Try looking at it from a different perspective.  Having to wait is disappointing but being patient now helped slow the spread of a deadly pandemic and saved lives.  At the end of the day a single life is more valuable than any possession we can purchase.  So try to remember this next time you get an email that the item you ordered is not available or there is a longer than normal wait.  Odds are the company doesn’t want to disappoint you in the first place, they simply have no choice.  So remember to be kind, be understanding, and be included in the group of individuals who strive to brighten other people day and not diminish them.  At the end of the day you will likely get what you want in the end, it just takes time.