Olympics Not a Big Concern
Most home furnishings vendors expect only minor hiccups with Chinese production during the Olympics, to be held in Beijing, Aug. 8 to 24.
Despite rumors of factory shutdowns to cut down on pollution and conserve energy, vendors pointed out that most of the home furnishings factories are far south of Beijing and should not be affected.
“All of our factories are far enough away from the Olympic sites that we are not concerned about a mandatory shutdown during the games,” said Rick Seidman, president and chief executive officer of Quoizel.
“We do not foresee any potential impacts,” said Bob Hickman, senior vice president of sales and marketing for United Feather & Down. “Our sourcing team has met and discussed operational logistics with each of our mills in China to ensure we have a smooth flow of product and a contingency plan to maintain product flow if there are any disruptions.”
David Zrike, president of The Zrike Company, believes the Olympics will have a negative impact on delivery dates and capacity as roads close and transportation within the country is impacted.
“We are concerned about trucking delays as transit time increases,” Zrike said. “We’re trying to plan for that.”
Zrike added that he will not make his usual trip to visit the factories in China this August, postponing his visit until later in the year.