Short days, still working

It’s dark in the morning heading to work. Our shop is hidden in the trees on this beautiful morning. Although it takes a flash light to get to work, once there we are going full speed.

With all the supply chain issues it almost feels like we are back in the 70’s. 12 to 16 week lead time on products has eliminated the “just in time” ordering plan. We are seeing increases in both the cost of goods and even more in shipping. Again, it is back to the old days where one needs to keep track of pricing on a daily basis.

This morning, November 3rd, I received an email from a factory in China. The government there has limited them to three (3) days of work per week to combat their energy shortages. This won’t help (even though we do not buy from this particular factory) with shortages and long lead times.

We are trying to build up inventory on popular items. That means letting some products go if the sales don’t justify increasing their inventory levels. Where we used to order 2,000 of an item we have increased to 10,000 on really popular goods. Our shop cat is loving this, more boxes to check out, it seems they all need to get sniffed.

One change we notice from our customers is that more are calling to check if we have something in stock. Knowing how frustrating it is to place an order only to hear that it is on back order, we encourage picking up the phone and asking.

OK, one item that we will not divulge our inventory levels is cat treats. Chance has decreed them top secret.

Fingers crossed that 2022 returns life to normal but in the meantime we will do our best to get your products out on time.