Potential Product Delays and Price Increases on the Horizon

The pandemic has disrupted many aspects of the global economy, particularly shipping and logistics. With the state of the current market, we wanted to share some factors that may affect our product supply and pricing.

The shipping industry has been hit particularly hard by COVID-19. With lockdowns, closed ports, and reduced staffing, shipping speeds have slowed, which makes it difficult to receive orders as quickly as we had in the past. To make matters more complicated, there’s also a shipping container shortage, as well as increased material and shipping costs.

What’s Causing These Issues?

Back in the spring of 2020, many countries entered lockdown, causing a restriction to many economic activities. This greatly reduced the number of available port staff and slowed cargo handling speed. In addition, many factories closed. To maintain their freight and avoid financial losses, shipping lines reduced the number of operating ships.

In the fall of 2020, many economic activities started to recover, causing production and export volumes to increase, especially from China to North America and Europe. However, shipping lines were continuing to operate with fewer ships and reduced staffing. This caused massive delays, container shortages, and increased freight rates. In response to these issues, some countries opened their factories on an every-other-week basis, causing an irregular flow of goods that added to port congestion and some shipping lines avoiding certain ports to avoid long waits.

Unfortunately, these issues are still at play today and are expected to worsen in the near future, especially as some countries are seeing a resurgence of COVID and taking the necessary precautions to mitigate its spread.

What Does This Mean for Me and My Project?

Due to these issues, it may take us longer to receive out-of-stock cabinets, countertops, and tiles than it did in the past. With market-wide price increases, we may also need to implement increases in our own pricing in the future.

If you’ve been considering installing new countertops, cabinets, or other upgrades to your home or business, this is an ideal time to get started on your project! By ordering your materials and scheduling service now, you can get ahead of the anticipated changes and save time and money.

If you have any questions or would like to request a bid or estimate, please feel free to send us a message at sales@artisticstoneinc.com or contact us online.