Main Street Monday – Subcommittee Looks to Strengthen Small Business Supply Chains
July 13, 2020
By: Caity Witucki
Contributing Editor, Main Street Monday
Main Street Monday – Subcommittee Looks to Strengthen Small Business Supply Chains
According to Procurious, the world’s top online business network for supply chain and procurement leaders, at least 97% of American business owners have experienced supply chain disruptions as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. These disruptions are now exposing long-standing vulnerabilities in the way that firms acquire their materials, components, and products.
Here are the highlights from the study:
- 31% of business owners say the pandemic has decreased demand for products and services.
- 26% say they do not have supply due to production downtime and shutdowns.
- 21% say they are experiencing logistics and transportation delays.
As a result of these ongoing supply chain disruptions, small businesses have had to adapt. The majority (73%) of organizations are now planning major shifts in supply chain and procurement strategy post-pandemic, including supply base expansion (38%), reductions in supply chain globalization (34%) and increases to inventory levels (21%).
On July, 7, 2020, the House Small Business Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Tax, and Capital Access held a hearing on small business supply chains. The hearing gave subcommittee members the chance to examine the nature of current supply chains, learn about how they are being disrupted by the pandemic, and determine what Congress can do to encourage supply chain resiliency moving forward.
Based on testimony from expert witnesses and small business owners, the subcommittee hopes to create policies that will strengthen small business supply chains.
“I hope this is a wake-up call to our business community and our federal policymakers to support policy that allows small businesses to survive and bounce back after a large-scale disruption like COVID-19,” Rep. Schneider said at the hearing. “Doing so will allow our nation’s small businesses to successfully confront unforeseen circumstances and will be critical to building a strong domestic economy.”