CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Supply chain issues are affecting practically every business, from restaurants to retail stores. With Christmas right around the corner, people are busy trying to get gifts for their families before it's too late.
Sherry Stone has been the store manager since Toy Mania in south Charlotte opened in 2019. Stone told WCNC Charlotte she's helped more customers find toys this year compared to years past.
"This year we have had an uptick in our inside shopping, which we still continue to offer curbside if someone feels more comfortable with that," Stone said.
Rhendy Ward, a mom of four, came into the store because she was having a hard time finding items that would come in before Christmas.
"We were looking online, and everything, and we were having issues making sure we wanted to get it in time," Ward said.
It's a problem many Americans have been facing as supply chain issues have been buffeted by a multitude of problems, from factories having to close due to COVID-19 surges, a shortage of truckers, a lack of containers to ship items in, and backups at ports and warehouses.
"The supply chain issues, and it has been a challenge, but we really started looking into those in April or May of this year, so we went ahead and beefed up orders and tried to increase quantities," Stone said.
Toy Mania's shelves are stocked as Stone explained, trying to get ahead of the curve -- but there are some items they are waiting on.
"We are in stock of almost everything, there are items that we had in early October that we have sold out of," Stone said.
Stone said in a few weeks they will have a backup shipment coming in to restock some items.
Contact Meghan Bragg at mbragg@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.