Frequent vendor increases and fuel-driven surcharges are moving faster than normal cycles — leaving little advance notice and forcing real-time adjustments on our end. Here's what's happening, and what we're doing about it.

One a year has become one a month

Over the past five weeks, we've been inundated with price increases, surcharges, and fuel-related add-ons from nearly every vendor we buy from. In a typical year, we'd expect one increase from a given supplier. Right now we're seeing one a month.

Our standard practice is to give you advance notice of any pricing change so you can quote accurately and plan your purchasing. That has become difficult. Many of these recent increases have taken effect immediately, or within just a few days of us being notified. In some cases we've learned about a change the same day it went live.

Some of this is justified. Some of it, in my opinion, is not.

A meaningful share of these increases trace back to oil — its cost, and the cost of moving it across the world, including through the Strait of Hormuz. Those pressures are real, and they show up in resin, film, adhesives, freight, and just about everything else that moves on a truck or a ship.

But I don't believe all of it is cost-driven. We've seen increases stacked on top of increases from the same vendor on the same product line, only to have that vendor pull back the second one and push it to the end of the month. That kind of whipsaw forces us to react, reprice, and then adjust again days later as new information arrives. It makes clear, advance communication almost impossible when we're not getting clear, advance information ourselves.

One concrete example: a plastics vendor raised prices 11% effective today. That's on top of a 20% increase from the same vendor last month.

What this means for you

We know this creates real uncertainty — for your quoting, your margins, and your conversations with your own customers. Nobody wants to requote a job twice in three weeks.

Here's how we're handling it:

• We absorb what we can. Not every vendor increase gets passed through. We're managing our own costs and freight aggressively so that what reaches you is only what we can't reasonably eat.
• We pass along only what's necessary. When an increase is unavoidable, we adjust to the actual change — not a rounded-up version of it.
• We communicate as fast as we get the information. When a vendor gives us notice, you get notice. When they don't, we'll tell you as soon as we know.

What you can do

If you're quoting work that ships out more than a few weeks from now, build in a little room — or reach out and we'll flag which lines are currently moving. If you have a large order in the pipeline on a product line you're worried about, call us. In some cases we can lock pricing or advise on timing.

Our team is at (602) 272-8655 or Sales@kgsupplies.com.

Thank you for your patience

I won't pretend this is a comfortable stretch for anyone. It isn't for us either. What I can promise is that we'll keep managing our costs carefully, keep our increases honest, and keep you informed as promptly and clearly as the information allows.

We appreciate your understanding, and we appreciate your business.