SUMMIT IMPORT CORPORATION
SUMMIT IMPORT CORPORATION
PIVOTS WITH A DYNAMIC PANDEMIC SUPPLY CHAIN
BY : GWENYTH P . LUU , CLCS , DIRECTOR - COMMERCIAL LINES , JGS INSURANCE
Established in 1955 , Summit
Import Corporation is among the largest Asian food import distributors on the East Coast of the United States with an additional Chicago base to service the Midwest . With over 50 years of experience and an unmatched reputation in the industry , the company carries complete lines of dry , refrigerated , and frozen food . Summit caters primarily to wholesale distributors , ethnic supermarkets , and food service clientele .
President Whiting Wu was initially attracted to work with JGS because of the multifaceted nature of the operation . Instead of Whiting having to approach different brokers for different insurance solutions , JGS offers comprehensive products and services for business insurance and group employee benefits . Whiting enjoys working with a personalized and dedicated team that oversees his risk management strategy .
As an essential business , Summit Import Corporation was not required to shut down when the lockdown was put in place .
A SHIFT IN DEMAND PRESENTED A CONSIDERABLE CHALLENGE IN MAINTAINING OPERATIONS .
Restaurants were ordered to close their doors , a large portion of demand for Summit ’ s products ceased very quickly . However , with ongoing purchasing agreements still in place with suppliers overseas , Summit was still bound by contract to purchase goods for food service clientele . This posed a major challenge and has resulted in significant waste as demand continues to be restricted .
Supermarket demand , on the other hand , spiked when the lockdown hit . Whiting says it was and still is a struggle to keep up with the changed nature of demand , which requires an entirely different selection of goods .
All the while , the company was working hard to outfit its operation so that employees would feel safe coming to work . Whiting found a significant staffing shortage simply because employees were afraid to take public transportation to work , so he needed to act fast to arrange alternate transportation .
Since the onset , Summit has made several changes to its operations to accommodate employees and adhere to new regulations . The company has now implemented a job rotation schedule and modified the shifts for various departments . Additionally , multiple positions have been reformatted for telecommute . Those who are not able to telecommute are protected with masks , sanitizer , UV lights and plexiglass barriers to give more people the confidence to come into work .
Economically , Whiting would like to see more financial support going towards fighting the spread of the virus so that his and other businesses can recover sooner . The sooner the spread of the virus is under control , the sooner he can pivot back to usual operations and the standard flow of supply and demand .
However , Whiting knows that even after the initial shock of the pandemic is contained by more effective treatment and a vaccine , business will be faced with a new normal that Summit will need to understand and adapt to in order to survive . He will continue to rely on the help of professional associates like JGS to modify operations and implement a strategic approach to remaining competitive in the new economy . +
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