(2.5 min read)
So the vaccine is out, and the end of COVID is coming.
As the world returns in steps and strides to pre-coronavirus standards of operation, you may be wondering—what should I do?
Simply pick up where I left off? Or has the pandemic impacted the foaming industry enough to necessitate change on my end?
How do I know what changes to make?
Thanks to Taiwan’s stringent safety protocols, Sunkist has been fortunate enough to stay in operation all throughout 2020. We’ve analyzed the market at large and our customers’ purchasing patterns to bring you a few key insights.
1. Costs are Increasing
This is true in a number of different realms. The three most important ones? Materials, shipping, and the US dollar.
Suppliers all over the globe—for steel and copper in particular—have been upping their prices. With the world in shutdown and delivery becoming the norm, global shipping rates have also gotten more expensive. These two factors in tangent means that the cost of ordering and getting foaming machines is only going to go up.
But hey, the upside? The US dollar is weak right now. This means major foaming companies around the world are actually mass-purchasing machines at this turn of the new year, since there’s no cheaper time to buy.
2. Demand isn’t Stopping
Let’s keep our focus on the major foaming companies—why else would they stock up on machines now?
Because they’re anticipating enough demand in the latter half of 2021. There are two sides to this coin, one positive, one more unfortunate.
The unfortunate side first: COVID-19 shut down large sectors of the world, and many smaller companies have been forced out of the game. This left vacuums in the supply chain that surviving companies are hoping to take advantage of.
The positive side: consumer-end demand doesn’t seem to be slowing. Despite the break that many manufacturers had had to take, major players are already getting ready for the 2021 year-end purchasing sprees, whether we’re talking Christmas, Hanukkah, New Years, etc. Bed-in-a-box is a continuously growing segment in bedding, right alongside traditional innersprings. Worldwide construction projects are slated to grow, as are travel rates, meaning growth in automobile and sporting goods industries alike.
This means that, if your factories made it out of COVID, congratulations. There are bright opportunities ahead.
3. Aggression is Smart
Point 1 and point 2 basically boil down to this: assess your situation, and act now. We obviously can’t speak for everybody in the world, but by and large, these are the patterns we’re seeing.
The pandemic might have put a halt to your operations, but the silver lining of that is your spending budget from last year? Some of that might still be there. Factory machinery is a hefty investment, but all the signs are urging you to buy sooner rather than later. If you know you’re due for a factory revamp or expansion, don’t wait—that expenses list is only going to grow.
So why not spend on necessary infrastructure when the price is good, in anticipation of future growth opportunities that are definitely going to come?
