Demand for products like hand sanitizer, cleaning supplies and toilet paper has spiked across Alaska, spurred by concerns over the coronavirus. That strain has been tough for some rural communities. The Alaska Commercial Company operates 33 stores around the state, including in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. In an effort to get ahead of that demand, General Manager Walt Pickett said that at the beginning of March, AC started to increase its orders from suppliers and manufacturers and stock its warehouses in Washington state and Anchorage.
“We’re making the case with different groups that we should be given special consideration, given the remoteness of our customer base and the remoteness of our stores," he said. "And we’ve had very good feedback from both manufacture and wholesale groups with regard to who we are and where we are. So that’s definitely a help.”
Those groups include United Natural Foods, Inc., which has a location in Centralia, Washington.
Pickett said they are facing demands similar to other stores across the country: more paper goods, shelf-stable foods, and cleaning products. He’s expecting shortages on certain things, like hand sanitizer, but he said they are planning to reduce redundancies in stores by going to alternative suppliers if one runs out.
“We do know that, for example, Clorox wipes, some of the hand sanitizers, it’s going to take probably four to six weeks before there’s an inventory available again. But we are doing everything in our power to get that,” he said.
AC is working with carriers to ensure that service continues as scheduled, and according to Pickett, common air carriers like Alaska Airlines and Ravn have said they plan to continue providing service to rural Alaska. The company is also creating contingency plans to move products into the communities should shipping be compromised. For example, if a water carrier had problems moving goods from Washington to Anchorage, AC could charter a plane to do so.