The past few weeks we’ve seen the demand in our industry come roaring back as we head into a jampacked August, September and October schedule. We’ve been busier than ever and excited to see our clients returning to shows!
I’m coming up for air as we crank through the current workload, so I’ll keep this concise with a few points of note:
- Lead times are longer… much longer. Small, routine items are around 2-3 weeks. Larger stock displays at least 4 weeks, and custom projects 6-8 weeks minimum
- Raw materials are continually increasing in price and low on supply. This is impacting custom projects, but soon to be felt in the stock items as well as they need to be replenished.
- Shipping/freight costs are up. Small package carriers are charging higher oversize fees, and we have recently been informed that our LTL carriers are as well.
- Shipping isn’t nearly as reliable as it was pre-pandemic. Most guarantees are out the window these days. Allow for at least a day or two extra in your timelines
- Inexperienced production labor means mistakes can happen, especially on rush projects. It hasn’t happened to us yet, thankfully, but easily could. Have backup plans ready.
- Covid is still the top news story, but hasn’t impacted any of the events we’re working on currently in terms of rescheduling or canceling.
This said, we’ve already been pulling off some quick turn projects, produced some fun, cool displays, and have been able to keep our clients happy! We aim to maintain that through the season. Managing expectations and communicating the above list will go a long way to a successful fall.
If you have a September or October show, let’s talk now!