If you've been to a big box store anytime in the past few weeks you may have noticed some bare spots on the shelves.
The supply chain and shipping delays are causing all sorts of issues for retailers this holiday season.
"A hundred percent, that's what's really saved us and helped us keep our store looking fresh and new is that we have so many local people who can just bring us goods kind of on-demand. So they're making them constantly, we are constantly refilling our shelves, thanks to our local vendors," explained Allison Bernardi, owner of Hazel+Dot in Tampa.
Bernardi sells a mix of locally made products and other items. Even as of late November, she hasn't received all the products she's ordered.
"So right now, I would say we've probably only received like 40-50% of the Christmas and holiday items that we ordered, and we truly don't know at this point what of our backorders will come. So we're kind of just at the whim of our companies hoping that they can get their containers here. We've received some really great stuff. So we're excited about that. But there are definitely things that we haven't received yet, that we're just keeping our fingers crossed and hoping may come in the next couple of weeks," explained Bernardi.
Regardless, the store is stocked with the help of local artists and crafters.
"We try to keep a really good balance of locally made goods and goods that are just fun. Right now, we have a lot of seasonal things. But like on the tree behind me right here, the wooden ornaments, our local person, we just love that we can support the community in that way. There are so many talented makers in Tampa. So we love to find new people. We're always on the lookout for new brands and find new things to add to our assortment," said Bernardi.
And as most retailers are saying this year, if you see it on the shelves buy it now.
"We have a lot of people come in, and they'll just say they're just looking. And we definitely encourage them if they see something to buy it because we just can't guarantee that it will be here. We won't be able to get backorders like we normally can we can't reorder. So if you see something in a store and you love it, definitely buy it," says Bernardi.
