Flu Fears Spark Sanitizer Shortage
By Jane Han
Staff Reporter
Influenza A fears are becoming an increasing boon for companies making sanitary products ― so much so that they're having trouble keeping up with demand.
Local manufacturers are running production lines around the clock, but they say that the sudden surge in demand for sanitizers is tough to meet.
``Antibacterial soap is normally not our top seller, so we weren't prepared to manufacture a huge quantity at such short notice,'' said an executive of Aekyung, the country's leading soap, toothpaste and detergent maker.
She said the company was considering importing raw materials for its newly best-selling antibacterial soap Blue Chip, as their current stock is insufficient to churn out enough products in a timely fashion.
Amore Pacific, another household goods manufacturer, is dealing with the same problem, with retailers making orders that are three to four times more than usual.
The company's Daejeon factory is operating 24 hours a day, but the added time isn't cutting it, with orders coming not only from traditional buyers, but new ones as well.
``Banks and credit card firms are starting to choose hand sanitizers and antibacterial soaps as gifts for their preferred customers, which makes already-heavy orders even heftier,'' said a company representative, adding that the latest fear over the highly-contagious flu has driven sales of hand wash products up more than 300 percent compared to last year.
The number of infected ― and recovered ― people in South Korea recorded 4,293 as of Monday, but it continues to rise, prompting residents to load up on everything from disinfectant spray and antibacterial soap to hand sanitizers.
Despite the hoarding of hygienic goods, retailers have so far managed to keep their store shelves stocked, but they may soon start running out if panicky customers continue buying products in bulk.
``Consumers are buying four to five bottles of the same product at a time, so our stock is selling a lot quicker than usual,'' said Hwang Woon-ki, a buyer at Shinsegae E-Mart, the nation's largest discount store chain.
At the hypermarket chain, sales of hand sanitizers shot up 150 percent last week from the previous week.
Homeplus, the country's No. 2 hypermarket chain, also saw its sales of hygienic products soar almost 140 percent last week from the week before.
``We are able to keep up with consumer demand right now, but that may soon change if manufacturers have trouble meeting our demand,'' said a company spokeswoman.