Rising Costs Add to Pandemic Pain for Small Businesses

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Sharply higher costs are yet another challenge thrown at business owners by the global pandemic.

The unpredictability of shipping, labor and the coronavirus itself have created an environment where owners are often left guessing about when products might arrive and how much they’ll cost. The Labor Department said Thursday that prices at the wholesale level rose a record 9.7% in December from a year ago.

“We put out new fires every single day and have had to reassess the way we do business to cater to new behaviors,” said Deena Jalal, owner of plant-based ice cream chain FoMu and co-founder of wholesaler Sweet Tree Creamery in Boston. Jalal is apprehensive about the long-term prospects for the small business community if inflation doesn’t calm down soon. “If we have to work this puzzle for another two years, I really do think we’ll see a lot of businesses — ourselves included — struggle to keep their doors open.”

To deal with rising costs and overseas shipping delays, Benedict significantly changed her vendor list, and now shops only with U.S. brands that make products in the U.S. And she added services like e-commerce and virtual design. But she’s still facing longer timelines for her projects and is not taking on new clients until things stabilize.

Some online vendors are eliminating free shipping to combat costs. Gianluca Boncompagni, owner of e-commerce site Off Road Tents, which sells off-road and overlanding equipment, saw logistics costs quadruple. In October 2020, he paid $6,300 for a 40-foot container coming from China. By October 2021, he was paying $26,000 for the same sized container.

Some businesses are using channels they developed during the pandemic to communicate with customers about why prices are increasing, in the hopes they’ll be patient.

 

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