It often has to do with uncertainty, timing and growth (with uncertainty as the root). After all, if everything’s certain, all business operations will go smoothly and the business owners, managers and staff will just sit back and count the money.
Challenges small businesses face
Uncertainty is at an all-time high now because of the pandemic. With the stage 4 lockdown in some areas especially Melbourne, uncertainty puts a strain to both the supply and demand in businesses. The restrictions result in decreased consumer demand plus they also affect the flow of supplies to different areas.
With widespread business shutdowns and scale-backs, consumer demand hits rock bottom. Coupled with the shutdowns, many businesses and industries suffer huge financial losses. This makes growth impossible during these times and the priority now is all about survival. Timing is also a huge concern right now because several things might change tomorrow or next week and our requests for supply might just be wasted.
The draconian measures to contain the crisis result in financial losses and temporary and permanent scale-backs. This is partly a response to strained demand and supply plus the growing uncertainty of our times (with or without the COVID-19). As a result, it’s crucial to make everything else certain especially when it comes to the arrival of supplies and merchandise.
Here at COOLTRANS, we somehow contribute with certainty through our prompt refrigerated deliveries. We implement real-time tracking of our fleet and deliveries so that the goods will arrive on time and as promised. In case of potential delays, we can immediately deploy a backup vehicle or find other ways to make the delivery push through.
Most purchases and deliveries are likely to scale down but these are still essential not just in sustaining the economy, but also in making sure customers get what they need. In fact, the demand might uptick because customers will buy more in bulk. This in turn changes the dynamics of supply and demand because of that sudden increase and pressure to the supply chain.
For everyday businesses such as food service outlets and supermarkets, it’s crucial to prepare for those fluctuations and new dynamics. This is not just for survival of the businesses, but also about being there for customers when they need us the most.
