Sewickley stores dealing with supply-chain issues

Toys that David Bishop ordered for Christmas at Big Bang Comics and Collectables likely won’t be here until well after the holidays.

Early in November, he still was waiting for the arrival of Halloween items, which he expected would show up at some point this month.

“I figure by Easter, we should have a nice selection of Christmas and Halloween items to sell,” he said. “There’s not a whole lot that I can do about it. We’ll put it out and see how it goes.”

Myriad supply chain issues across the globe — from factories shutting down for a time because of covid-19 to ships lining the docks on the West Coast filled with cargo containers waiting to be emptied and staffing issues in nearly every facet — have made it hard for some stores to get merchandise designed for the holidays in time.

Locally owned businesses in Sewickley’s business district are not immune. But, shop owners say they’re doing their best to get what they can to their customers in time for the holidays. And they recommend that if you see something that would make the perfect gift, you don’t wait to buy it.

“We still have stuff that’s trickling in, but I’ve told our customers, if you’re looking for Christmas stuff and you see something that you think that you might be interested in, I honestly suggest that you buy it while you’re here because we haven’t been able to get restock items,” Bishop said. “If it’s something that I can even reorder, it’s taking forever for stuff to come back in.”

During the holiday season, House 15143 — known for its curated home goods, including art, decor and vintage finds — is known for holiday pillows and ornaments. Typically, co-owner Danielle Franks has holiday merchandise in storage, tagged, lined up and ready to go by Oct. 1.

“This year, we still have things that are not here yet, that are trickling in,” Franks said the second week in November. At that time, she was waiting on a portion of the ornaments that she ordered to arrive.

“We’re trying to get things out as quickly as we get them in and really just encouraging people to shop now.”

Even purchases from domestic and local businesses have been affected. A candle vendor based in Virginia that Franks typically buys from has had trouble getting glass. The company was forced to cut her typical order in half this year.

She doesn’t know when the items that have yet to arrive might show up. She calls the store’s vendors frequently to check in on the items.

To address the supply chain issues, Franks has been working to buy more locally and domestically. Being in business for 10 years, she knew ways to approach this year’s hurdles. House 15143 does a nice business in vintage, she said, and that’s an area that hasn’t been impacted. Fortunately, she has stockpiled vintage items from her travels that can keep her shelves filled.

At Fun by the Pound, Pokemon cards and Nee Doh squishy balls are in high demand, yet hard to come by.

“Every time we get a packing list for an order, almost half of the things on there are back ordered,” said manager Emily Fisk. “It’s a lot of the squishy fidget toys that the kids are really into, a lot of it comes from China, and China isn’t shipping it over right now. All of our toys that are from Germany, they’re not shipping it over either.”

Still, owner Brenda Fisk, Emily’s mom, has been able to keep the shelves rather full.

Normally, she starts ordering Christmas items in September and October. This year, she started talking about the purchases in July and ordered them by early August.

“Usually our big sellers at Christmas are science kits, building kits and, of course, all of the good big-time LEGO sets.”

Typically, Fisk can place special orders for clients who want something unique that the shop doesn’t have on hand.

This year, she has had to tell people “no,” because many of the items are not available, and, if they are, they wouldn’t arrive until February.

“I’m so grateful for the owner, my mom. She’s just so ahead of herself. She always knows what to do,” Emily Fisk said.

This year, that included buying early.

At Big Bang Comic and Collectables, comic books still are arriving on their regular schedule. It’s the toys, novelty and collectible items that are running several months behind.

“I’ve been told that a lot of that stuff is sitting in containers on the West Coast waiting to be unloaded and shipped like everything else,” Bishop said.

In April, the shop began to run low on backs and boards used for collectible comics. When Bishop placed the order, he was told the items likely wouldn’t arrive until December.

“I have tons of stuff in our back warehouse that I can’t put out for sale because I don’t have the back and boards to properly get them displayed,” he said. “I’m cherry-picking the really good stuff for the limited supply that I have, but I have tons of stuff that I can’t even put out yet because I don’t have the supplies to properly do so.”

Sales from weekly comic books are enough to keep the store afloat. But there likely won’t be a pick-up in sales during the holidays at the shop this year.

Franks said she and other small business owners were hoping, coming out of last year’s covid-19 closures, this year’s holiday business would be booming.

“Unfortunately, with things being stuck on the water and arriving late, is definitely going to affect business,” she said.

Franks asked that patrons remember to be kind this holiday season when they can’t get an item they’re looking for.

“Everyone is short on staff. We’re dealing with supply issues,” she said. “Just be a little more gentle with us. We’re trying.”