It’s been months that the supply chain has been impacting the nation. I’m amazed that more hasn’t been written on it. Christy Frank, an experienced retailer, wrote a primer about shipping for Sevenfifty.com some time ago and I saw a press release or article this week in Wine Industry Advisor about the crisis but it still feels like it’s a conversation that we all should be having constantly instead of so infrequently.

During the pandemic, the cost of shipping a bottle home from an online or physical retailer was a topic much on my mind but the shipping crisis generally less so. Shipping woes are nothing new but at this scale they are unheard of and the situation is now improving. Many believe that the cost will be passed on to the consumer of all sorts of goods.

I have been wondering what all of these changes have wrought in different segments of the industry. Here’s an interesting article laying out some of the difficulties. Bottle shortages seem to be widespread.

What I also wonder is how are sales reps handling this crisis and how are importers managing their inventory. From what I have read, the shipping crisis will continue for a few more years, maybe until 2023 unless the recent infrastructure bill can change that too.

It will be interesting to see what the new year brings.