Supply chain mess continues to frustrate Chicago furniture store owner
CHICAGO (CBS) – A Chicago small business owner is taking on a global problem. He's struggling with shipping delays thanks to supply chain issues.
Those troubles hit a new high when his merchandise from China finally arrived in Illinois, only to get stuck in a stack of containers.
CBS 2's Lauren Victory explained how the Andersonville company is handling this hurdle.
Many people want to feel their furniture before buying. In the HTMarket.com showroom, you can take a seat and put your feet up. The owner wishes he could relax too, but he recently got word he'll be charged to hurry up and wait on his shipment that's stuck in the stacks.
HTMarket.com business boomed during quarantine. Alan Hutchinson's customers were hot for his theater equipment.
"It was good for a while but it was hard to manage," Hutchinson said.
But because of backlogs due to global supply chain issues, his shipments from Shangai became unpredictable, though tracking for a recent order looked promising.
"I got an email, OK, we're ready to pick up and then another email came back and said, no you've been stacked," he said. "I go 'Stacked?' What is that? I've never heard of it."
Merchandise from China had made it all the way to Joliet, only to be piled on top of other containers at the Union Pacific railroad terminal.
How many of these chairs are stuck in Joliet right now?
"We got about 120 sitting in Joliet," Hutchinson said.
That's delaying the comfort of his customers and robbing relaxation from Hutchinson who heard it could be a six-week wait.
Then he learned about the fees associated with stacking in this Union Pacific policy, up to $2,450.
"You're holding my container hostage," Hutchinson said. "Why am I paying storage?"
That's now how Union Pacific sees it. A spokesperson said they don't want to stack containers, but sometimes need to do so to "maintain safety and fluidity."
The fees are meant to incentivize business to pick up their merchandise faster.
"We would get our own truck and trailer and go in and get it, but it wasn't available to get," Hutchinson said.
That's because his stuff was still stuck in that container pile. Union Pacific told CBS 2 it doesn't take long to undock.
Hutchinson said Union Pacific reps were in touch on Wednesday and promised to un-stack his container and waive any fees. He worries about it happening again for his next shipment.
Union Pacific repeatedly told CBS 2 the storage fees are meant to help supply chain delays and that the company doesn't view them as revenue generators.