Remember last year when the pandemic created a toilet paper shortage?  Then there was a sell-out of basic bleach products.  It even got crazier.  Ketchup was in high demand.  So was work-from-home desks, web-cams, bikes, outdoor pools.  Speaking of pools…now chlorine is in high demand.  Let’s not forget about the inventory of houses on the market.  If you’re looking to buy a home, good luck low-balling your offer.  The housing market is insane right now.

That leaves a category I would have never thought would be added to the list.  Apparently, there is a shortage of surfboards.  The deficit is the result of many people taking up surfing as an "I want to take up something new during Covid" hobby.  This is forcing the supply and demand ratio to be unbalanced.

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Many local and east coast surf shops that stocked their inventory before last summer season was hit with the reality of the pandemic and whether or not they be able to stay in business.  But much to their surprise, surfers and want to be surfers came in droves and sold out their inventory.  Now manufacturers are struggling to meet the demand.  In return, wave riders are waiting longer for the product and ultimately paying higher prices.

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"The idea is not to panic and think, 'Oh my gosh, we're in trouble, we need to respond to that demand,'" said Sean Smith, executive director of the Surf Industry Manufacturers Association, a trade group based in Aliso Viejo, California. "We have to be good about forecasting where that's going."'

Brian Wynn, who is the owner of Wynn Surfboards in Egg Harbor Township, says this "kind of crunch might not be a problem in California, where surfboard manufacturers are plentiful. But the surfing ecosystem on the East Coast is relatively new".

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Another reason the surfing community grew during Covid19, is that many people with Jersey Shore vacation homes relocated there during the pandemic which allowed them more frequent access to the waves.  Needless to say, there's plenty of those to go around.

You Will Only Get These Things If You're From Jersey...

 

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