Remember these? Our lovely branded cups… but even our regulars haven’t seen these for months. Those cups are symbolic of the problems that Cafe Allez! – and all of the hospitality industry – are facing right now.
Let us elaborate. The reasons are many and complex, but it’s getting increasingly difficult for us to get hold of products that should be an absolute cinch. Chiefly it’s down to a national shortage of wagon drivers, which was the case pre-pandemic but has worsened since. Wagon drivers literally keep our country moving and the shortage is now hitting so many businesses, hard.
In recent weeks, McDonald’s has announced that they can’t sell you milkshakes or bottled drinks. A good friend who’s a senior buyer at Greggs tells us of the nightmares they’re having keeping shelves stocked. And Nandos had to temporarily close scores of restaurants last month recently due to problems sourcing ingredients.
If the big names are struggling, you can imagine the little guys like us are really feeling the pain. Even products like bottled water or our preferred brand of teas are currently hard to get hold of, meaning ‘phone calls across numerous suppliers to find what we need, or tough decisions temporarily switching to another less-favoured brand.
So – what of the cups? Well, we’re now on manufacturer #3 having had all sorts of production issues, stock destroyed in warehouse accidents, broken promises and missed deadlines. In a little while and with everything crossed, they should arrive. Meantime we’ve spent countless hours on the ‘phone tracking down even vaguely acceptable non-branded cups. Time we’d much rather spend improving our offer, or serving you!.
The reason we’re sharing this with you is to ask for your forgiveness and kindness if you don’t always find the exact range that you’re used to at Cafe Allez! – or in any other coffee shop or restaurant you love. Things are not easy right now … but, as a sector and as Cafe Allez!, we fight on!.