Patchouli Garden. Image courtesy: Ben Meyer/WXPR
PARK FALLS, WI (WSAU-WXPR) – Goods stuck on cargo ships outside the port of Los Angeles is impacting businesses in the Northwoods.
The Biden Administration recently announced it worked out a deal with the port to move ships through 24/7 to help work through the backlog.
Patchouli Garden is a shop that sells oils, soaps, and candles in Park Falls. Owner Tara Tervort says her main supplier for the patchouli oil upped their prices 45% because it had supplies stuck on one of those ships.
She ended up having to switch suppliers.
“It was actually our first time ever ordering it from new place in the last 20 years that they’ve been selling patchoulis oil. It was kind of sad we had to leave our supplier for that, but I mean we had to do what we had to do. Otherwise, we’d have to increase our product prices.”
Tervort says she was anticipating supply shortages ahead of the holiday shopping season. She’s been stocking up on some of the other supplies she’ll need.
Tervort hopes that changes at the post office don’t impact the high the number of online sales her business does. “Once it leaves our hands, we literally have no control over the postal service. We always have that one package that ends up going all over the United States before it gets to them. We always tell people at least two to three weeks before you need it. We’re hoping it’s not going to extend so far. Like I said, we haven’t seen any big delays yet.”
She says if you want to be on the safe side, you should order gifts three to four week out.
Christmas is nine weeks away.
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