InTents August/September 2024 - 8

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What is driving your
price increases?
1. Passing on costs from
suppliers 91.1%
2. Increased wages for
employees 63.3%
3. Higher utility costs 46.8%
4. Higher rent/facility
costs 30.4%
5. Investing in new
equipment 26.6%
6. Higher taxes or other
government fees 21.5%
7. Other 8.9%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
How much have the raw material/fabric prices
you are paying to suppliers increased over the
last year, on average?
50%
34.1%
49.5%
31.5%
12.9%
6.6%
2022
2023
More than
25 percent
2022
2023
10 to 25
percent
2022
2023
1 to 10
percent
4%
2022
8.8%
1.6%
2023
No change
2022
1.1%
2023
Decrease
Top concerns
Our survey listed 21 potential concerns for
respondents to rate in terms of importance,
ranging from wars to imports and from cash
flow to PFAS. Those concerns at the top of
the heap, voted as a 4 or 5, were about the
same as previous years, just in a slightly
different order and mostly relating in some
way or another to costs, prices and margins.
This makes sense, as it's the bottom line that
keeps a company operating. It was a photo
finish, but inflation worries were big enough
to put that category slightly ahead of finding
skilled labor, which was 2023's top concern.
Utility costs edged supply chain delays
out of the top 6 in this year's survey as
businesses have been adding redundancies
to their supply chains and nearshoring
what they can post-pandemic.
Besides looking at the top vote-getters
to see trends, it's always interesting to look
at additional details that people provide,
either expanding on their answer or
giving their unique concerns. One person
specified customer " inertia. " Another
explained, " Clients are fearful to spend due
to the instability in our country. " However,
slowdowns are cyclical for one business:
8 intents aug-sept 2024
" Our business sees a drop any election
year, " the respondent said.
In the workforce category, respondents
were concerned about what one termed
as " knowledge retention. " One got more
specific about a demographics issue:
" Replacing an aging workforce with
qualified personnel. "
Other common concerns cited costs of
taxes, insurance and regulations, with California
regulations called out specifically
by one business, and " changes to building
code requiring additional bracing, increasing
costs. "
Competition in niche markets driving
prices up and competition by cheaper online
goods were felt by other respondents,
as well as the rising cost of imports and a
need for domestic suppliers. Some businesses
also would like to find suppliers
that allow for smaller minimum orders.
" Keeping up " was a concern several
businesses expressed. Responses included
keeping up with business, tech and
computer advances, social media and
digital marketing, and the trend toward
sustainability-and even keeping up with
work in general.

InTents August/September 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of InTents August/September 2024

InTents August/September 2024 - Cover1
InTents August/September 2024 - Cover2
InTents August/September 2024 - 1
InTents August/September 2024 - 2
InTents August/September 2024 - 3
InTents August/September 2024 - 4
InTents August/September 2024 - 5
InTents August/September 2024 - 6
InTents August/September 2024 - 7
InTents August/September 2024 - 8
InTents August/September 2024 - 9
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InTents August/September 2024 - Cover3
InTents August/September 2024 - Cover4
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