How is Your Supply Chain?

Supply Trumps Price During Difficult Times

Supply chains are broken in every segment due to the global Coronavirus pandemic. Quarantines, closed borders and incredible demand for P.P.E. (Personal Protection Equipment) are preventing many distributors from getting their usual allocation, let alone enough to meet the growing demand. 

To keep your business running you need to focus on supply, not prices. Do not be fooled by low-cost offers from unknown distributors in this market; choose established vendors who deliver on their promises and will do whatever it takes to help their customers. A distributor like MDS Associates.

Everything is Fluid

In the current market, things are changing daily. Major manufacturers are implementing price changes. Replacement costs are skyrocketing. Many products are on allocation. New opportunities often have ridiculous minimums, and are all pre-pay. The simple fact is availability and pricing are going to be very different than they were pre-pandemic. 

At MDS, we have had several customers balk at paying higher prices for PPE. They then went out to the market to evaluate other options, only to find empty promises, price gouging and untenable lead times. Inevitably, they came full circle and back to us for their needs. But they had given up their place in line and were possibly subject to further price increases.

Relationships are Key

Now is not the time to squeeze your distributors. It is not the time to pinch pennies, delay purchasing while you shop for two weeks, or cancel orders because of lead times. Instead it is a time to take advantage of your relationships to help deliver vital supplies.

For over 30 years MDS has furnished competitively priced essential supplies to help combat the cross-contamination of infectious pathogens and bacteria. MDS Associates is using our 30+ year relationships with key manufacturers to bring in as much product as possible at reasonable prices for our customers. We are taking the time to evaluate substitute products and reject working with suppliers who don’t live up to commitments. 

This goes both ways, as we are rewarding our customers with incredible service and access to products they cannot find elsewhere. We are allowing customers to avoid the great risk of ordering online from unrecognizable companies. We are raising prices as necessary to keep up with increased costs, but we have not increased our margins during this pandemic as many others have done. Despite the pandemic, we have not shrunk our customer service team or furloughed warehouse staff.

Plan Ahead

The pandemic is not going to end anytime soon, and the turmoil in the supply chain is expected to last until 2021 at least. To get the most out of your supplier relationships, now is the time to work with distributors as true business partners. If you proceed looking at your suppliers as commodity brokers valued for price alone, you will end up disappointed, or worse, out of business. 

While MDS has experienced disruptions in our supply chain, we continue to be flexible and adapt to bring in products for new and existing customers. To our existing customers, thank you for your continued support and patience. To new customers, contact us today to learn more about how we can help you stay stocked with the supplies you need.

Shop for P.P.E. here now!

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