You’re Going To See Smaller, Squishier Toys On Store Shelves This Holiday Season. Here’s Why.
My kids are into all things small and squishy. Well, squishies AND fidget toys, but that’s for another post.
As it turns out, it’s a good thing they like all those little squishy toys, because that’s exactly what’s going to be available in large supply this Holiday Season.
Why? Blame it on those freight boats that are log-jammed off the coast of California.
Early in the year, the hope was that the bottlenecks that gummed up the global supply chain in 2020 would be mostly cleared by now. They’ve actually only gotten worse — much worse — and evidence is mounting that the holiday season is at risk.
Bloomberg
The giant bottlenecked ship situation has caused a whole slew of issues for businesses.
It means there is a shortage in the supply of shipping containers needed for bigger toys, and the cost to ship the goods they CAN get is higher.
But, what does this mean for YOU this Christmas?
It means, for one, a lot of the gifts you have to choose from are going to be smaller and less expensive.
For giddy consumers, that pent-up holiday excitement could turn into disappointment by December if they can’t buy the toys and gifts they want.
Axios
With stores having a hard time stocking their shelves with the bigger, more expensive toys, you are going to see little toys (like squishies) dominating the shelves this Holiday Season.
If stores can’t get their hands on the big product, they simply can’t sell it.
They are having to supplement the revenue lost (by not being able to get those big, expensive toys) with a stock of smaller toys.
The businesses are hoping to sell the heck out of these smaller toys to meet their money quotas.
Some of the BIGGER retailers (Target, Walmart, Costco, Home Depot) are having to charter their own boats, planes, and trucks to try and get around this crisis. But, those smaller companies (think local) don’t have the revenue for this.
We may just see some of those mom-and-pop-type places closing up shop. *Sad Face*
The second thing that might affect us is, there may be a spike in the prices we have to pay for things. Ugh, right?!?
Why? The shipping costs companies have to pay to get their goods has gone drastically up. They might not have any other option than to pass the cost on to us.
The rate for a 40-foot container from Shanghai to Los Angeles would [now] be $10,299, up 238% from last year, per CNN.
Yahoo Life
Looks like it just might be a lean Christmas this year. We just may have to get creative with our gift giving.
Have you seen this Adventure Box idea? It’s a great alternative to traditional gifts.
