The threats and challenges that COVID-19 has created for global supply chains are difficult to analyze and interpret at this point. Historically, global supply chains have experienced major disruptions like that of 2011’s earthquake and Fukushima tsunami attack but the way the new coronavirus is taking a toll on supply chains is totally unprecedented.

One of the major challenges is the lack of reliable information and data. Meanwhile the lockdowns, staff shortages, and the overall economic slowdown are forcing businesses to put a massive cut on their operational cost.

Supply Chain Disruptions – Impact on Small Businesses

In our highly globalized age, businesses commonly have long and complex supply chains and disruption at any point of the strip poses a great threat to businesses’ survival.  And when we talk about disruptions, you can take an example of products of everyday use. For instance, most of the garments products in the United States go through a detailed process before reaching you. From raw material to packaging to transportation and distribution, each clothing item takes a long voyage using different transportation means before it reaches you.

Unfortunately, COVID-19 has not just affected one segment of the thread but the entire value chain is disordered which has caused several businesses to throttle down or temporarily shut their operations worldwide.

How to Plan For the Future

The situation is currently chaotic but there is certainly light at the end of the tunnel. How long it will take to get to that side of the tunnel is pretty hard to tell at this point as the situation is evolving at an incredible pace.

With no vaccine currently available, “Social Distancing” will continue as the main measure to control the spread of the virus. This indicates that the current situation is likely to prevail for a couple of months to come. Here is what businesses can do to boost the resilience of their supply chains.

1. Assess and strategize. Prepare for the worst by conducting a thorough risk assessment drill and prepare a backup plan for disruptive events.
2. Create a transparent structure, establish connections with new suppliers, prioritize critical components, and identify alternative sources.  
3. Keep yourself informed and use data analytics to analyze the shift in buying patterns. Develop a demand-forecast strategy to stay ahead of the curve by making risk-informed decisions. Plan for both short and long term as the buying patterns are changing continually.
4. Incorporate intelligence monitoring to estimate inventory requirements along the value chain for a couple of months to come. From spare parts to after-sales stock, monitor every part of the system so that you know your capability to produce and deliver.
5. Manage your critical supply effectively. Make sure you do not run out of critical supplies as the situation will prevail for months. Making informed decisions is key.

The COVID-19 crisis has affected shopping behaviors and we are experiencing an increase of demands of certain products such as masks, sneeze guards, and PPE whereas demand of products pertaining to automobiles is at an all-time low. To shop our collection of safety products for immediate delivery please click here.

How Blink Global Can Help You 

At BlinkGlobal we are quick in responding to changes in the marketplace and global environment. We are prepared to not only handle fluctuations, but also embrace the volatility and turn it into a competitive workforce. Let us control your inventory levels so you can focus on the merit more instead of worrying about the inventory, which will offer more opportunity to decrease costs and increase profits.

BlinkGlobal practices an agile supply chain management system of product distribution concerned with doing things quickly, saving costs, being responsive to market demand so that we can maintain flexibility while keeping our productivity high.

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