MICHAEL LICHTER CEO
CULINARY DEPOT
TOM CAPOBIANCO CEO
HAFSCO
GEORGE TOBIA PRESIDENT BRESCO
and rolled it into 2021,” Tobia says. “Now you’ve got this storm, all this demand, no product. We can’t get the products for weeks and months.”
Dealers across the country are seeing shortages for similar equipment types regardless of the market. Many raw materials – including the stainless steel and aluminum commonly found in kitchen equipment – are near all-time price highs while others are suffering from shortages. The cold storm that struck Texas in February stalled production on the polyurethane used
to insulate refrigerators and freezers, leading to supply scarcity that is still impacting several equipment manufacturers. Lead times for walk- in freezers and refrigerators are now between eight and 10 weeks, Tobia notes, while underbar equipment can take as long as 25 weeks to deliver. The impact is wide-ranging, with many items, such as fryers and deli cases, now seeing lead times of 10 weeks or more.
The labor shortage many operators are experiencing is driving even more equipment demand. Although overall restaurant sales have nearly recovered to pre-pandemic levels, employment at eating and drinking business was still down in June 2021 compared to June 2019, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Further, the hospitality sector reported 1.2 million job openings at the end of May – a record high since monthly readings began in 2000. “We still
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