Thread by @LauraBehrensWu

1/ I'll attempt to explain our current supply chain challenges in a very simplified way🧵. Everything you have in your house had to be shipped multiple times to get to where it is, through ocean, air, trucks, last mile delivery - in containers, on pallets and in packages

2/ LA and Long Beach harbors are where more than 30% of US ocean freight come in. Right now they are congested. Bc of ships stuck in the Suez canal, spiky demand during Covid, manufacturing issues, port closures, lack of automation, low workforce. Inventory can't come in.

3/ When containers arrive there are not enough truck drivers in the US to take the containers (and later empty containers) where they need to go. There are more than 13 loads per available truck. That's bc of Covid related workforce issues and high demand for e-commerce during.

4/ Warehousing is another breaking point. At the height of the pandemic many warehouses shut down and later implemented social distancing measures that have them run at lower capacity. Right now it's hard to fill warehousing jobs. Orders can't go out fast enough.

5/ The last mile is breaking as well. All last mile carriers are at capacity with Covid making e-commerce surge. Regional last mile carriers stopped taking on new clients in Q2, every carrier expects delays and can't guarantee SLAs. Packages can't get delivered on time.

6/ In the last mile the market has become more fragmented as a result of that. More new companies are entering the space to provide the service that merchants need. That's the good news. More options are emerging. Lot's of startups in that space getting funding.

7/ What can you do as a consumer: buy Xmas gifts early (like now), buy local, buy second hand, be understanding with merchants (most merchants will experience issues).

8/ What you can do as a merchant: set clear shipping expectations, set clear inventory expectations (if it's sold out it's sold out), add a few extra days to the expected shipping timeline, use more last mile carriers, advertise it clearly if you have inventory!!