How US Retailers Are Navigating Supply Chain Disruption and Consumer Expectations

Across the nation, U.S. businesses are continuing to navigate supply chain disruptions, affecting sourcing, inventory, costs and product availability. A myriad of factors have fueled this disruption, not least geopolitical turmoil and extreme weather events, alongside changes in trade policy and continued evolution of global sourcing networks.

With geopolitical uncertainty and extreme weather events likely to remain features of the operating environment, the predictability that businesses once associated with global trade is becoming harder to maintain. Instead, business owners are navigating a series of headwinds that require them to build greater flexibility into their supply chains.

In other words, we now live in an era defined by a “new normal” of ongoing disruption where resilience and adaptability are becoming increasingly important to how businesses operate.

How US Businesses Are Adapting

So, how are businesses adapting to the "new normal" and what could this mean for the retail experience and consumers?

According to BSI’s recent Supply Chain Disruption Outlook, U.S. businesses exhibit a lack of preparedness for nascent supply chain shocks. Despite half (49 percent) of the organizations surveyed having experienced a supply chain disruption previously due to geopolitical events, less than a third (30 percent) said they were fully prepared for raw material or component shortages, including scarcity of critical inputs.

This gap between exposure and preparedness is prompting businesses to reassess how they manage inventory, sourcing and product ranges.

Thirty-six percent of U.S. businesses said they were actively planning to increase prices to offset costs in the next six months, while nearly a quarter (24 percent) said they plan to reduce their product range. Additionally, 68 percent said they expect to pause new orders, highlighting the extent to which businesses are reassessing purchasing and inventory strategies in response to uncertainty.

Facing scarcity and disruption, U.S. businesses are also actively trying to mitigate the impact on operations. According to BSI’s research, 81 percent are stockpiling or building strategic inventory buffers, while chain or amount (78 percent) is currently nearshoring their supply chain or considering doing so in the next 12 months.

In terms of immediate action, over a third (37 percent) expect to find new suppliers, and over a quarter (28 percent) expect to shift trade routes. One in five businesses also expect to cut jobs or reduce recruitment due to supply chain pressures, demonstrating that the impact of supply chain decisions can extend beyond procurement and logistics into wider business planning.

Ultimately, the research points to a period of adjustment for retailers, suppliers and consumers. While businesses are taking practical steps to manage near-term disruption, the longer-term opportunity is to move beyond individual fixes and build supply chains that are more visible, flexible and resilient. Stockpiling goods or switching suppliers can provide important short-term protection, but lasting resilience requires businesses to understand where vulnerabilities exist and how different risks could affect their operations.

Adapting to the ‘New Normal’

Many business leaders likely feel challenged by the new, unstable global outlook. However, while they may not be able to independently resolve the source of supply chain disruption, they can take steps to improve preparedness and foster greater operational resilience to it.

Through collaboration, improved visibility across supply chains and more proactive approaches to managing risk, businesses can more accurately identify supply chain vulnerabilities and address them before an order is delayed. BSI’s Mapping, Evaluation, Strategy and Harmonization (MESH) framework, for example, uses intelligence-led insights to help clients monitor emerging threats and implement targeted risk mitigation strategies.

In a more volatile geopolitical climate, forward-looking and data-led approaches like this will be crucial for fostering greater preparedness. By transforming supply chain management from a reactive operational burden into a proactive strategic asset, organizations can better anticipate disruption, respond with greater agility, and maintain continuity for their customers. The businesses that build this flexibility into their supply chain strategies today will be better positioned to navigate uncertainty while continuing to meet changing consumer expectations.

Todd Redwood is the global managing director of consumer goods, retail and food at BSI, where he leads initiatives to support global brands and retailers to achieve their sustainability, digital trust, health, safety and wellbeing, and product quality and safety ambitions across all markets.