The three biggest issues we currently face are back orders, inconsistent shipping, and inflation. All three are interrelated.
Current back order situations are usually born from either (1) material shortage or (2) Covid outbreaks in factories. For example, due to a shortage in certain materials, right now it is difficult for manufacturers to meet the demand for electronic machines. There have also been Covid outbreaks in the factories where machines are manufactured. Whenever there is an outbreak, the factory has to shut down for several weeks, causing major delays in the supply chain.
Obviously these back order situations cause shipping delays. However, the problem is further exacerbated by bugs in the shipping industry itself. Currently the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles are extremely congested, with freighters backed in a holding pattern off the coast. What does that mean for us? There is a strong possibility that some the machines we have ordered have been built, but they are stuck on a freighter off the coast of Southern California, waiting their turn to dock.
The combination of material shortage, back order situations, shipping delays, and a variety of other factors has resulted in an inflated price of product. To speak generally, all of the products we carry have increased in price over the past 18 months. We don't like having to raise our prices, and we don't like it when we are out of inventory. We have been testing different ways to combat these problems. How can we keep our prices low despite inflation? How can we keep inventory in stock despite back orders and shipping delays?
Fortunately, we still have product in stock NOW and at a LOW PRICE because we do the following: