Saturday, November 13th, 2021
Goods are running out
Delivery bottlenecks are now also affecting hardware stores
In many areas, consumers currently have to reckon with limited product ranges due to delivery bottlenecks. This now also applies to a particularly popular destination: DIY megastores with garden centers. There, dealers are already limiting the quantities sold here and there. There are many reasons for the turbulence.
The global distortions in the supply chains are putting Germany’s DIY megastores with garden centers under pressure. The general manager of the trade association for DIY, building and gardening (BHB), Peter Wüst, is to be feared “for some time to be clearly noticeable effects”. “Many suppliers are currently terminating their contracts with trading partners across the board and are announcing massive price increases and delivery bottlenecks.”
Occasionally, retailers limited sales volumes, “so that offers are available for all customers and not individuals buy up entire groups of goods”. Is it getting more expensive for consumers? The representative of the association emphasized that the industry is “traditionally very price-conscious” and will continue to find ways to offer the goods at comparatively attractive prices. A spokesman for the Bauhaus hardware store chain said with regard to the supply chains that the situation was “very dynamic and tense”. But one cannot make a long-term statement about delivery times and price developments.
There are many reasons for the turbulence in world trade: After the corona crisis year 2020, with the economic recovery, demand soared after many companies had cut production. At the same time, containers are scarce. In addition, there were serious events such as the wreck of the container ship “Ever Given” in March in the Suez Canal, which blocked this important route for days.
Association representative Wüst expects that the general situation and thus the shortage of raw materials will be regulated in two to three years. In this year’s Christmas business, he does not expect the situation to “worsen further” in hardware stores and specialist garden centers. This section of the financial year is rather unimportant for the industry – customer demand should not pick up again until spring.