Two in three retailers are having difficulty importing sought-after products – from barbecues, spring bulbs and patio furniture to sofas and laptops.
The re-opening of the economy risks being hamstrung by the fact many popular items listed as ‘out of stock’ – as people also scramble to get outdoor furniture in time for the ‘rule of six’ to return to gardens and parks on March 29.
Port congestion and Brexit red tape are being blamed for the shortages ranging across DIY home makeover products, computing equipment, sports and recreation goods, jewellery and watches.
Some food and drink products, such as imported beer, and ingredients have also been caught in the log-jams.
The problems have been highlighted in a survey of 10,000 retailers by e-commerce experts EKM, which provides the website infrastructure for 80,000 online stores.
These outdoor furniture items have also been listed as out of stock on the John Lewis website
These barbecues sold by John Lewis are among the items not currently available on its website
A number of home indoor furniture items are out of stock on the John Lewis website
Outdoor heaters are also in high demand ahead of the outdoor ‘rule of six’ returning
Small independent stores are being hard hit, but customers of big names like IKEA, Dunelm, Currys PC World, John Lewis, Argos, B&Q, Homebase, Screwfix and Wickes are reporting gaps.
Shortages include high profile products like the PS5 and Xbox Series X games consoles, while Peloton, the maker of exercise bikes and treadmills, has suffered long delays in fulfilling UK orders.
Some imported furniture, bicycles, barbecues, patio heaters, sinks, taps, bulbs from Holland and sewing machines from Germany are hard to get. Even the supply of pet food pouches has been hit.
Garden furniture, such as rattan patio sets, are in particular short supply. The Leisure and Outdoor Furniture Association, which represents 70 manufacturers and wholesalers, said all of its members are having problems with imports.
It complained the cost of shipping a single container from China and Indonesia has soared from around $1,200 last year to anywhere between $7,000 to $10,000 this year.
Outdoor furniture is in high demand with John Lewis listing some products as out of stock
Many items of indoor furniture are also listed as out of stock on the John Lewis website
A series of laptops from different manufacturers are also out of stock on John Lewis
Retailers are doing all they can, but, for example, people complaining to Dunelm get the pro-forma response: ‘I am very sorry to advise that this item is out of stock and we currently don’t have a restocking date available.’
Unhappy shoppers have taken to social media to express frustrations. One shopper tweeted: ‘Loads of homewares-type stuff seems to be out of stock on UK websites like John Lewis, e.g. they had 16 different patio heaters and none in stock online.’
Another wrote: ‘Been trying to buy a Chromebook and virtually impossible to find (one) … So much stuff out of stock John Lewis, Curry’s and Argos.’
Problems first emerged in the run-up to Christmas with congestion at major ferry ports, such as Felixstowe, hitting imports from China.
Subsequently, red tape linked to Brexit means many trucks crossing the Channel in both directions are empty. This appears to also have been exacerbated by Covid-19 and the requirement for lorry drivers to be tested.
EKM said: ‘Nearly two thirds – 64 per cent – of retailers are experiencing lengthy delays restocking some items due to disruptions to supply caused by Brexit and global shipping congestion.’
It said 22 per cent of these were reporting delays of at least three months and a further 28 per cent delays were seeing delays of one-to-two months on some items.
Some 58 per cent of the 10,000 respondents were online-only retailers, while the others operated both a high street shop and online.
EKM says that nearly a fifth – 18per cent – of retailers have been forced to switch to non-EU suppliers to minimise delays and the higher costs associated with trading.
The company’s chief executive, Antony Chesworth, said: ‘Delays obtaining items from EU suppliers and congestion at ports have persisted for several months and look set to continue for the foreseeable future.
‘Nearly two thirds of retailers are reporting delays and in many cases those delays are for several months or more. The impact of these delays has fallen disproportionately on small, independent retailers with limited storage space to stockpile in-demand items.
‘Many large retailers were able to take steps to increase inventory levels pre-Brexit but small retailers are generally reliant on just-in-time fulfilment, which means that the merchant places an order with the supplier only when a customer places an order with the merchant. This helps small retailers minimise the amount of cash tied-up in stock but leaves them at the mercy of supply chain bottlenecks.’
He added: ‘These delays are costing retailers significant amounts of lost revenue. Rather than potentially waiting months for a product most customers look elsewhere, which means that the larger retailers often secure sales at the expense of those retailers most affected by supply chain disruption.’
Director of Food & Sustainability at the British Retail Consortium, which speaks for the major chains, Andrew Opie, said: ‘Congestion at the ports and ongoing challenges relating to the UK’s new trading relationships, have resulted in delays for some goods.
‘Retailers are working closely with suppliers to mitigate these issues, and while ongoing shipping issues may not be resolved immediately, the situation is improving.’
Some retailers confirmed the shortages are the result of import problems, others said it was due to high demand linked to home makeovers.
IKEA said: ‘Life at home has never been more important and, throughout the pandemic, we have seen an unprecedented demand for products that help people to live, work and play more comfortably from home.
‘At the same time, our global supply chain – including the ports and goods terminals where our products are received – has been impacted by the cumulative effects of Covid-19 and changes to regulations as a result of the Brexit agreement; putting additional pressure on availability.
‘We are working hard to resolve these challenges, including with our supply chain to increase the availability of our products, including increasing production capacity and the number of suppliers sending goods to the UK & Ireland. We appreciate our customers patience and thank them for their continued support.’
John Lewis said: ‘There are certain items where we’re working with suppliers to improve availability to meet customer demand.’
Sources at the retailer suggested the problems related specifically to the difficulty of container ship imports from China, rather than Brexit.