Recent flooding in British Columbia led to a double-barreled consumer emergency: Stores emptied rapidly of food and household items, and because both road and rail links were so badly damaged, there’s no clear idea when regular deliveries can resume.
Shades of the early days of the pandemic: Once again, we’re seeing the fragility of the modern retail supply system.
It’s essential that we learn from this. Specifically: Don’t wait until an emergency threatens. Instead, build a good-sized stockpile of food and other vital items in advance.
Understand: I am not advocating hoarding. The Canadian government was pleading with folks in B.C. not to panic-buy, which would leave nothing for others. (That worked well.) Instead, I am talking about a simple, targeted approach toward not just getting these items, but using and replacing them regularly.
This isn’t only about food, either. Do you tend to wait until the last minute to buy cat litter? Ever found yourself purchasing tampons at a convenience store at 11 p.m.?
What about the allergy meds that keep your eyes from swelling shut every spring, or the lotion that makes your psoriasis flare-ups a little less painful? Suppose you were running low but kept procrastinating – and then an emergency made it impossible to get more?
Fortunately, there’s a bonehead-simple solution. Just three basic tactics can help keep you from running out of food, pet supplies, OTC meds or, yeah, toilet paper.