Business View Magazine | Volume 9, Issue 3

177 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 9, ISSUE 3 COE DI STR I BUT ING normality would return by the fall of 2020. It was shortly afterward, however, that the second wave hit – and COE Distributing saw the return of the heart monitor environment. “From September 2020, we really saw revenue flatten and decline,” Ewing notes. “But then, by April 2021, we started recording five straight record months in terms of revenue. Before the pandemic, there have always been ups and downs but there was a sense of predictability because we were always growing. By the time the second wave hit, we not only had to manage the back-to-the-office delay but also emerging supply chain constraints.” Fortunately, the supply chain issues are now starting to lessen. COE Distributing’s largest supplier, which was forced to shut down for four months, has started to contribute an inflow of products again. Although it’s hoped that the worst of the disruption has passed, some of the changes forced upon COE Distributing, such as the manufacture of its acrylic screen, will likely persist. “The acrylic screens were not necessarily our first foray into manufacturing, but they were our first really concentrated effort in this area,” Ewing says. “But we quickly realized that we couldn’t cut acrylic in mass quantities successfully because we didn’t have the right equipment. I was able to connect with two of the three largest acrylic distributors in the country and they cut our acrylics to size, which helped us tremendously. This is a product that we are definitely going to continue offering.” As well as its willingness to pivot, COE Distributing has been able to ride out the worst of the pandemic by increasing its stock to soften the impact of any supply chain issues. The company has three distribution facilities totalling approximately 750,000 square feet. It has purchased significantly more safety stock over the past 12 to 18 months to fortify itself against further disruption. “The time that saw the greatest challenge for us was when factories were shutting down completely for four months,” Ewing recalls. “We were caught off guard, without a viable backup facility. But if there is any good news to emerge from all this, it’s that it has certainly forced us to get creative and dig deeper as a team. Another point to mention is that the majority of our competitors are in a very similar position due to supply chain constraints. And they did not necessarily plan ahead and bring in excess inventory as we did.” COE Distributing also took the time to assess how customer demands were shifting as a result of the COVID pandemic. With more individuals working from home, many employees are looking for higher-end products to build their home offices around. “Over the last 12 to 18 months, as home working became more permanent, companies started to realize that they were going to have to fund some if not all of the necessary furnishings,” Ewing comments. “There was a shift in the type of furniture that was being purchased, so we’ve had our clients