Nationwide supply chain disruptions affect Kane County retailers, manufacturers

Those looking to pick up a juice box or two from Blue Goose Market in St. Charles or any other grocery store might find themselves coming up empty.

You can blame the problem on lower-than-expected apple yields this year and a shortage of bottles and juice box containers, according to industry experts.

And those who are doing any baking this holiday season probably are learning that it’s hard to find spices such as ginger and nutmeg, more victims of the supply chain problems.

Retailers in Kane County and across the country have been hit hard by supply chain disruptions that are affecting companies’ operations, which in turn are leaving many store shelves bare and business owners increasingly frustrated.

What products are available at any given time comes and goes, said Paul Lencioni, president and CEO of Blue Goose Market in St. Charles.

“There are all kinds of different things,” he said. “You are only getting 80% of your load right now of what you ordered. And it will rotate through. They might have had temporary shortages. You don’t know because it’s not like all these products come with a written explanation to us.”

Supply chain problems are affecting the store in other ways.

“We have a really bad shortage in packaging, like deli trays,” Lencioni said. “Doughnuts come in a box and you can’t get the box. You can’t get the box to put a cake in. We’re having to get creative sometimes.”

Despite the shortages caused by supply chain problems and other factors, Lencioni said he doesn’t believe it would be right for him to put limits on certain items.

“You come in and want it, I’m going to sell it to you,” he said. “Maybe I can get more, maybe I can’t. I don’t see the sense in saving things.”

Supply chain issues have affected Geneva Ace Hardware, 617 W. State St., Geneva, General Manager Alex Serrato said.

“It can be anything from expanding foam to snowblowers,” Serrato said. “It’s been so random. Sometimes, it’s paint products like paint primers or just regular stock for household paint.”

The store usually sells Speed Queen washers and dryers, but had not had any for a year before finally getting some recently.

Serrato said the shortage was blamed on computer chips needed to manufacture them.

“It’s chain saws and snowblowers – gas or battery-operated – we can’t get what we usually get and quantities are not abundant,” Serrato said. “We waited six to eight months for outdoor furniture. Everybody is affected.”

Raul Brizuela, president and CEO of Argentum Medical, a medical device manufacturer located in Geneva, had supply chain challenges in packaging with Tyvek.

“They wrap houses with Tyvek. It’s a moisture barrier and it also breathes,” Brizuela said.

The company puts raw materials in the packaging, relying on a Tyvek layer because the raw materials can be sterilized with gasses that penetrate the Tyvek.

“It was scary for a while with sleepless nights,” Brizuela said.

The company dodged what could have been other supply chain woes because it already had a strategy of having high levels of inventory, Brizuela said.

“We have been fortunate (and) not missed our deliveries,” he said.

Michael Simon, owner of The Little Traveler, 404 S. Third St., Geneva, said supply chain issues have prompted him to tell shoppers to get their holiday gifts when they see something they like because it might not be there later.

Even something as simple as getting a car fixed is impacted by supply chain woes.

Simon said his car needed a repair and he was told the needed part could be available tomorrow or in two months.

The biggest problem for Monitor Technologies, an Elburn company that manufactures level and flow sensors for the bulk and solids market, is getting materials from suppliers to be able to make its product, owner Craig Russell said.

Another issue, he said, is a problem with logistics and getting materials from point A to point B once they arrive at U.S. ports.

He said both situations are causing major delays for clients Cargill, Lafarge and other companies that make concrete, plastic and grain and feed products.

“There’s a whole bunch of products sitting on containers in the ocean,” Russell said. “Normally receiving a container of goods from Taiwan to our building takes about five weeks. Now we’ve had stuff that’s shipped in early October that won’t be here until early next year. So now it’s a seven- to eight-week delay.”

Russell said demand for his product has soared as the economy recovers from the shutdowns related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Luckily, he said, most of his clients have been understanding about the situation.

“We’ve been running at about a pace of 10 weeks of backlog instead of two weeks, which is a five-fold delay,” he said. “Fortunately, in our industry, we’re not the only ones because it’s a worldwide issue. [Our clients] are probably in the same boat as they’re having trouble getting materials to provide their product. It’s pretty much everywhere.”