British game chain warns of reduced options at Christmas due to supply disruptions | Retail sector

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There will be discounted choices of toys in stores this Christmas, and prices are expected to rise 10% in 18 months due to supply chain disruptions, labor shortages and rising transportation costs, the head of retailer The Entertainer warned.

Gary Grant, founder of the family-run toy store chain, which has about 170 stores in the UK, said the cost of shipping a container from China by sea had risen twelvefold from about $1,500 (£1,095) a container in early 2020 to Nearly $18,000.

“You’re going to see some inflationary pressures, and retailers are working hard to curb that pressure,” Grant said in an interview with BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

“Not all of our inventory is shipped with the latest container rates, so I think we will likely see 18 months until those prices flow into a significant retail change, which could be a 10% increase over the 18 month period.”

Grant said companies faced a series of challenges when importing inventory from Asia during 2021, ranging from a shortage of shipping containers where they need them, to port closures due to the coronavirus and storms.

“You couldn’t write a book of stories of all the different things that affected the supply chain from the Far East this year,” Grant said.

“As a trading company, we have over 300 containers in shipping which is way behind what we would have been at the moment going into September.”

The toy industry has been warning consumers for some time to buy now for Christmas to avoid the disappointment of December.

“You will find that there will be no toy stores with empty shelves, like there will be supermarkets with empty shelves on Saturday afternoon,” Grant said. “But what you’ll find is that the range of games available will shrink because we won’t have the variety, as there will be a lot of items out of stock.”

Grant said the shortage of labor in the UK poses more challenges for retailers once they are able to bring in inventory from the Far East.

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He expects the shortage will be most acutely felt in the crucial run-up to Christmas, when the number of employees at The Entertainer’s warehouse will triple.

“Even when containers arrive in the UK, they have to be shipped by an articulated truck driver and truck from port to warehouse. When we get them into our warehouse, they have to be put away, they have to be sorted, repacked, packed and then sent by truck to our stores across the country.”

“Right now, the challenges are for warehouse customers. We have been talking all year about the lack of people picking fruit but now we will talk about the lack of people picking crates.”

Warehousing, transportation and logistics companies including Amazon, DHL and Whistl have announced plans to offer joining bonuses at various locations in the UK in order to attract permanent and seasonal employees.

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