You order your new furniture and it “should” arrive in 10-14 weeks, which seems long. Since when you order anything on Amazon, it’s at your doorstep the next day. However, furniture, lighting, fabric, and building materials take longer to ship. Why? The answer is pretty straightforward “supply and demand” throw in the global pandemic, labor shortages, and natural disasters, and you have the perfect storm for shipping delays.

The Cause

First, let’s talk about the supply and demand issue. In 2020 a global pandemic hit; people stayed home and soon realized just how important their home was to the sense of comfort and security—everyone sheltering in place except for essential workers. As a result, manufacturing plants, small businesses, and lumber mills stopped working. In reality, the world of manufacturing anything stopped. However, during the shutdown, people kept buying with the expectation the goods they wanted were available. But as the demand for more and more building supplies, houseware, and furniture grew, the in-stock supply ran out. Remember when you couldn’t get toilet paper? Supply and demand.

The Supply Breakdown

As the buying demands increased and the supply dwindled, many factors came into play. In the case of a sofa or chair, an order is sent to the manufacturer. Because of the shutdowns, their timeframe is now double, if not more. Before 2020, as an example, in any given month, say 100 orders came to this manufacturer. They may have 200- 300 or more orders with higher demand. However, it still takes the same amount of time, workforce, and resources to make one sofa or chair, but the need increases. Now throw in the shortage of resources because an ice storm stops foam production in Texas, or a ship with fabric from India gets stuck in a port because there is not enough labor to load and unload the boat. Each one of these factors adds to the manufacturing delays.

Where do we go From Here?

Our clients ask us how long they will have to wait if we order new furniture? The honest answer is we don’t know. The manufacturers may estimate the arrival times, but as we outlined in this blog, many factors are at play. However, working with an interior designer, we can help you navigate the ordering process and offer insight into which companies are shipping faster. Also, we suggest reupholstering and refinishing for our clients with quality furniture pieces and working with local workrooms and tradespeople.

Ready to Start a New Design Project?