NASSAU, BAHAMAS — A Bahamian auto dealer said yesterday the “surprisingly high demand”, particularly for high-end vehicles, was being hampered by “extremely frustrating delays” in vehicle shipments out of the US and Japan.
Ben Albury, the Bahamas Bus and Truck general manager, told Eyewitness News: “I do have a huge demand right now, especially for high-end product. My biggest challenge is getting product. Manufacturers in Japan and the US have all emailed us and told us to expect an additional two months on every order that we make.
“US product usually takes four months from when it’s ordered until I get it. Right now, I’m facing a six-month wait time.
“My product from Japan, which normally takes six months from the time I order to delivery, is taking eight months.
“With these delays, it is extremely frustrating because I am experiencing a surprisingly high volume of people wanting product.”
Albury added: “To me, it’s more frustrating than not having demand. Last month was actually a decent month. This month has fallen off greatly.
“It’s not any lack of demand but actually having what I need to sell. There are a lot of shipping issues.
“I am hearing people in other industries saying the same thing. Some of the car manufacturers are telling me that they are having challenges securing the microprocessor they use to make certain components because so many people are buying laptops and tablets to work from home.”
Albury said he hopes that next month he will “catch up” with some of the orders that have been delayed.
“I had two vehicles pre-sold [that] I was told would arrive on April 19. Now I’m being told they won’t arrive until next month,” said Albury.
“My used vehicles I had coming from Japan were supposed to be here in March. I was subsequently given a delivery date in April and now it’s the third week of May. It’s pretty rough.”
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