Ho, ho… oh: Inflation and supply chain issues means it’s more expensive than ever for party New Yorkers to decorate their venues. The...
Ho, ho… oh: Inflation and supply chain issues means it’s more expensive than ever for party New Yorkers to decorate their venues.
The Grinch-style price hikes and empty shelves were especially tough for Joe Mure of Belle Harbor, Queens. Over the past 20 years, the 60-year-old criminal defense attorney and 2018 home decor champion of ABC’s “The Great Christmas Light Fight” has transformed his four-bedroom home into a local vacation attraction dubbed ” The small North Pole “.
Last week he invited neighbors for his annual tree lighting which is “better than Rockefeller CenterThe brightest house in the neighborhood, and perhaps the city, the Maison de Mure exhibit is a dazzling feat that requires an army and a commitment of timing to succeed.
It features towering lighting, large gifts, life-size statues of cherubs, and a two-story nutcracker soldier gracing the entrance. There’s also a double turned showcase with a garage with miniature winter scenes depicting Central Park with children skating, a workshop with Santa and Mrs. Claus knitting – and a workshop with elves busy building toys.
Mure wanted to go especially big with his decorations this year after COVID put the kibosh on holiday gatherings last year. But securing the goods to give his home the Griswold trim was more difficult than ever, he said.
“The [were] a lot of shortages so we made do with what they had, ”Mure said, citing fewer garland colors and lights in stock. “We ordered small things from local places and it was a bit more expensive, but they were very generous and kind to us.”
Mure admits he got the decorating supplies he needed in part because of his long-standing relationships with local merchants. Others may not be so lucky this year. A combination of port backups more than a month in Los Angeles, combined with China’s running at 60% capacity due to power outages, created a perfect Christmas decoration storm.
“Electronics and Christmas lights, like most US imports right now, are experiencing massive delays in ports,” said Sal Stile, president of Alba Wheels Up International, a New York-based supply chain and freight management company. In addition, electronic devices and items containing rechargeable batteries are classified as ‘dangerous goods’ and shipping companies have reduced allowances for moving these types of goods to prevent fire or other incidents. similar do not occur during the trip. “
And according to the immutable laws of supply and demand, shipping issues mean higher prices for consumers.
“The considerably higher freight costs associated with customs fees have raised prices,” said Regina Morrow – a buyer of Christmas lights, pottery and garden maintenance for the Westbury-based company. Hicks Nurseries.
“Electronics and items containing rechargeable batteries are classified as ‘dangerous goods’ and shipping companies have reduced allowances to move these types of goods to prevent fire or other similar incidents from occurring. produce during the trip. “
Sal Stile, President of Alba Wheels Up International
The retailer said it needed to pass these price increases on to the consumer over the holiday season, although it said it ordered early so it wasn’t too short on most items.
It’s not just lights and garlands that are harder to find. Even fresh trees are scarce this year.
“Everything seasonal has increased,” said Jen Shaw, 41, who lives on Staten Island with her partner and her partner’s two children, 12 and 9. “The lights. The trees! [Oh my God], for a fresh tree in Bay Ridge, I saw it was over $ 100! The trees cost around $ 70 max! And it was a big tree, ”she said.
Compounding issues like a lack of trucks and drivers to transport the trees – as well as a deliberate decade-long shortage aimed at driving up prices for Christmas trees, due to a previous glut of trees – are causing difficulties. for retailers and consumers. similar, according to George Smith, who has Tree store in New York with four outlets and an online business selling trees and holiday decorations.
Smith has also seen prices skyrocket and supply shrink this year. A truckload of goods from Canada carrying a load of fresh Christmas trees cost $ 4,100 last year; this year it cost $ 11,000. It had to pass on price increases of around 30% to its customers. It also lacks holiday decorations, including treetops and stars.
“Business is on the rise. There is more demand and the prices are on the rise. Everyone wants a tree, but the prices have tripled, ”Smith said.
But even for a Christmas nut like Mure, it is not the play of light and the balms that make the magic of Christmas. Each year it raises funds for research into juvenile diabetes – so far it has raised over $ 2 million. He even organizes an event for children with special needs.
“[They’re] lovely, innocent kids, and you see the joy and the smile and the sparkle in their eyes, ”Mure said. “It is priceless.”
cha-chingle bells
The price of Christmas, yesterday and today
7.5 foot artificial tree
2019: $ 149
2021: $ 199
Source: Mac Harman, Managing Director of Balm brands, a seller of high-end artificial trees, and American Christmas Tree Association, a nonprofit business group focused on artificial trees.
6 foot real tree
2019: $ 77
2021: $ 107
Source: George Smith, Owner of NYC Tree Shop
Light string
2019: $ 11.99
2021: $ 15.99
Source: Los Angeles Times
Average electricity bill
2019: $ 770
2021: $ 935
Source: New York State Department of the Civil Service
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