Are firework stores going to get stock before the Fourth of July?

[MortarRack]

I am thinking about getting some fuse online, but because it is SO expensive right now, I was wondering if there will even be fireworks at online or local stores... Obviously if I can't get fireworks, I don't need fuse lol

When do y'all think fireworks will return to normal stock?

How much more expensive will they be? (I just saw sold out fireworks on some online stores that were selling them at 2x 2020 prices!)

Thanks

[ssmith512]

Just visited my local Phantom today. They had a pretty reasonable stock and selection. I was pleasantly surprised to see the shelves pretty full. Lots of stores have fireworks right now. The longer you wait to buy, the harder it will be to find them. If you have a couple of sheets of 3/4" plywood, you might be able to trade them with someone for a truck load of fireworks. :-)

[jamisonlm3]

Once this virus is gone, things should settle down. Right now, I'm know several wholesalers are very low on stock.They have a fraction of what they would normally have at this time. The two stores I went in earlier in the year were well stocked. I'm sure other stores are as well, but also those that are very low too.

[upNdown]

From what I've seen, the good, smart retailers have a lot of stock. Not full, but lots. I would suggest buying from them now. If you've got stores with no stock, I wouldn't be holding my breath. And if they do get anything it will almost definitely be more expensive than anything you've ever seen.
And if you can buy fuse now, I would definitely buy it right now. Because from everything I've heard, at this point, there's no reason to believe there will be any fuse available next year either. That American made green and red, yes. All the other, faster fuse we use? That's not coming out of china any more, and I believe that's due to policy, not shipping problems.

[Okimarine]

If you have a couple of sheets of 3/4" plywood, you might be able to trade them with someone for a truck load of fireworks. :-)

I've seen plenty in stock as well but with premium price tags. I'd say double price for some of the items I purchased early last year.

P.S. I have (3) full sheets of 5/8 OSB for trade.

[jknepp1954]

I am thinking about getting some fuse online, but because it is SO expensive right now, I was wondering if there will even be fireworks at online or local stores... Obviously if I can't get fireworks, I don't need fuse lol

When do y'all think fireworks will return to normal stock?

How much more expensive will they be? (I just saw sold out fireworks on some online stores that were selling them at 2x 2020 prices!)

Thanks

I hear its going to get worse instead of better - at least another year. I hope they are wrong though.

[leftiluci]

your late to the party. buy whatever you can now. wholesalers are low on inventory of consumer product , however there is tons of o.l. product that has arrived in the last 3 months. just picked up the last of my 2020 orders last night. run forest run.

[Rick_In_Tampa]

Not sure how big your budget is or the size of your show, but if you normally shoot 20+ cases then you had better get moving. You're already late. Pickin's are slim and it's not going to get any better. I bought my stuff in December and had it delivered in January. Glad I did too.

[upNdown]

I noticed this morning that one well-stocked local store raised it's prices on all it's shell kits 20%, overnight. This isn't new stuff they're paying enhanced shipping for, this is stock that's been sitting there all year. And they weren't cheap before, either.

[RalphieJ]

I noticed this morning that one well-stocked local store raised it's prices on all it's shell kits 20%, overnight. This isn't new stuff they're paying enhanced shipping for, this is stock that's been sitting there all year. And they weren't cheap before, either.

Supply and demand. It happens with everything.......gasoline, food, clothing.......why should pyro be any different?

[BMoore]

What I'm hearing is that product is coming in, but there is a lot of product on the water or in China waiting to be shipped that simply won't make it before the fourth. To add insult to injury it sounds like a lot of this product will likely arrive shortly after the 4th. Going forward, things will improve but it may be up to 3 years before the supply chain returns to pre-pandemic normalcy.

[Auto1918]

from what I have been told from 4 different wholesalers that I deal they are saying that next year is going to be even worse that this year. and if you have not already bought or put a down payment on your fireworks for the 4th you are most likely not going to be shooting any thing this year.

[Rocketshooter]

There is product out there for wholesale orders but it's going fast. Buy now or you'll be paying retail for your show.

[MidwestPyrotechnics]

from what I have been told from 4 different wholesalers that I deal they are saying that next year is going to be even worse that this year. and if you have not already bought or put a down payment on your fireworks for the 4th you are most likely not going to be shooting any thing this year.

I've heard that as well. Seeing as your from Indiana too Id say were talking to the same people though. At least three of the wholesalers I know aren't taking 1.4G orders at all anymore this season. It sounds like next year will be worse for 1.4 customers and for those of us with our type 54's.

Retailers will definitely have product this season but once they start selling out their isn't going to be much to restock with. I bought as much wholesale consumer grade as I could about a month ago just to have it and it was scrapping the bottom of the barrel. Couldn't find cannister shells anywhere. As someone mentioned above, I hate to see what retailers will be charging this year....

[Scotty Rockets]

I’ve stopped at 2 retailers recently, one is my go to gem place and the other is a high priced border store north of IL. Both have fairly limited stock and shelves are not near 100% stocked. I would say that even if your only option is buying retail then you best shop now, don’t wait.

[Birdman]

Been to a few mom & pop stores in PA the past couple of weeks. All have a decent amount of stock but shelves are not full and what they do have are not the usual cakes I have come to expect them to have in stock. Apparently they are getting stock in, just not the stuff they would usually carry. Also, very few if no sales to be had and prices are noticeably higher, which is a killer with the PA taxes. One store had fuse but no white or yellow fast fuse and the price was nearly double from last year. Now I'm hearing there's labor shortages in China. I've already decided I'm not increasing my cue count for next year. I'm starting to be concerned this may be the "new normal". There's a lot of changes in China that aren't covid related that could effect supply and prices going forward. Only time will tell.

[Jabez]

I saw plenty of good stuff/prices at local mom n pop shop BUT the big name interstate chain store had some empty shelves and crazy increase in prices.

[displayfireworks1]

I think Matt from Dominator Fireworks said it best back in May 2021. Considering the delays in shipping coming out of China. back in the beginning part of May he said ( I paraphrase here) If it is not already on the water , it is probably not going to make it by July 4th. Matt sends out communications to people in the business from time to time that are usually a good representation of the current state of fireworks importation into United States. I already saw one of my advertisers a major mom and pop distributor posted on his Facebook , he is sold out and can not take any more orders, he also cancelled his demo night.
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If you need something critical for July 4 better buy it now. A few days a go I received word one of my newest cakes "Spooky Staircase" is sold out at the distribution point. Its out there on a retail shelf somewhere. I have multiple new products that will not arrive until post July 4th. I am hoping my Displayfireworks1 Firecrackers and Recursion drop in Ohio at my distributor Wholesale Fireworks the last week in June.
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While we all get the Pyro Fever on our high holiday July 4th , lets not forget it is not over . We still will have plenty of reasons to shoot displays.

[crayzkirk]

i was at Hale Fireworks in Buffalo, Missouri on Saturday. They had just opened on the weekends. They had lots of stock however it goes fast. I spent enough to get the 66% off. Didn't shop around too much, got a Body Bag with mostly Brothers items and some individual 500g and 200g cakes and a few fountains to get me to the wholesale point of $1000. I went to another website to compare prices and almost everything Brothers lists out of stock. Prices are up about 15% across the board. I'll probably go back next weekend and pick some more up for the family. I might pick up a few things at Pyro City; their prices are comparable if you don't get to the $1000... That extra 16% almost forces you to go ahead and spend the extra $$$. A $250 pack of canister shells is a much more reasonable $84 instead of $129.

[Salutecake]

So, if fireworks are still being made, and some places have stock, and containers are still coming in, but some are out on the water and won't be coming in until after the fourth, so it seems places will get restocked, with no big mass sales event except Labor day, and prices up 15 to 20% how much of the stuff still coming in will be sold by next year? Yep, and I know things change instantly, but why is it always Doom and Gloom? I have a feeling most of us will still shoot what we can get our hands on, and also pay the price this year and next.

[Berserker23]

If you haven’t bought your fireworks yet I highly recommend buying ASAP

[nightstalker]

A few of the places I buy from are out of alot of stuff.

[caleb90]

stopped by to shops i visit in northeast pa. both had full showrooms. didnt have the same variaty as last year though

[WithReport]

... both had full showrooms. ...

I suspect some may have showrooms full but low backstock. So when it's gone it's gone.


I talked to a wholesaler the other day, with all the production and shipping issues, there are many late containers and they have already accepted the fact that some just wont make it in time.


I thought this video that came out the other day was interesting. There may be more to it, specially for fireworks, than what is covered in the video. However, given that I work in in an industry that tries to uses a Just-In-Time approach, a lot of this made sense. Additionally during this time, we've seen suppliers struggle and just close down.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1JlYZQG3lI


After listening to the video, I did look at reserving a rental car with AVIS for next weekend. Just as it said in the video - Sold Out.

[upNdown]

So, if fireworks are still being made, and some places have stock, and containers are still coming in, but some are out on the water and won't be coming in until after the fourth, so it seems places will get restocked, with no big mass sales event except Labor day, and prices up 15 to 20% how much of the stuff still coming in will be sold by next year? Yep, and I know things change instantly, but why is it always Doom and Gloom? I have a feeling most of us will still shoot what we can get our hands on, and also pay the price this year and next.

That's a fair question. I bought the last of what I need, yesterday. But with all this talk of 2022 being worse, I seriously considered buying a bunch of stuff to stow away for next year. I already did that with fuse - I've got enough to last me a couple more years, but it would seem crazy to start stashing cases of shells. I believe I'll wait, and monitor things closely. I have to think that as long as I plan on buying in very early 2022, things will be fine, just like this year. I hope.

[Scotty Rockets]

Stopped at a truck stop in southern Indians to fuel up the other day, inside they had a tnt display stand section like you see almost everywhere. That little display stand was half empty... now that’s telling LOL

[caleb90]

stopped at another place tonight.. still plenty in shop with bogo sales to boot. the 3 places i went are bigger well known places who have been around a long time. maybe thats why? idk i honestly doubt they will "out" after the 4th rush.. a phantom store did shoe horn its way into a vacant store in a plaza in town. thought about stopping there for giggles.

[displayfireworks1]

Everyone has to remember the average Consumer Fireworks user is going to wait until the last few days before the July 4th holiday and decide to show up at a fireworks store to purchase fireworks. I know last year I was hired out to do a private show in the Chicago area. Just outside of the Chicago Illinois to Indiana border , there are many fireworks stores near that border area to capture the sales from Chicago where fireworks are not legally sold. On that July 4th weekend 2020 there were lines to get into the fireworks stores into the street at 1:30 AM . Some BOGO outlets dropped the BOGO and it was just pay to get one. Everything everywhere sold out. I'm seeing that happening again this year.
Fireworks retail outlets are scrambling to get products. I'm scrambling and negotiating to get the Displayfireworks1 products to those on the DF1 product finder location list. My cake with World Class, Academic Pyro is not going to make it this July 4th unless it out there sitting on a self or tent somewhere. One of my popular cakes OG Pyro is not coming until after July 4th along with some of my newer ones. I have a reorder that I am expecting to drop at the distributor in Ohio soon.
In short, most of us on the forums are more than average fireworks users. Be smart, buy now for July 4th.

[Scotty Rockets]

A friend of mine that operates a store has told me that business has been really really good and they are way ahead of sales at this same exact time as last year. Media is doing a great job by creating pyro hysteria, LOL

[FBpyro]

I went to the Fireworks Superstore in Hannibal, MO last weekend and they had just as much stock as in 2020, prices didn't seem to be really too different either from what you'd expect although I can't speak about other stores/tents/retailers.

[crayzkirk]

Here in Missouri the official sales for use didn't start until 6/20. You can buy before then however you must sign a waiver that you won't use them in Missouri. I'm seeing tents going up everywhere and am getting daily emails from vendors like Pyro City. I compare their prices to Hales and they pretty much are the same until you get to the magical $1000 retail and that extra 16% makes a big difference. We are going back on 6/26 to make another purchase for the family get together. We get more novelty items for the kids. I've been tempted to get a NOAB however knowing that there's a 1.5" shell in that 3" tube turns me off. Like the 6" cannister shells with 3" of empty space. Oh well, since when has advertising ever been honest.

I'll report back after the weekend on my experience as we get closer to the 4th and more people start buying.

[AxeElf]

Here in Missouri the official sales for use didn't start until 6/20.

I'm on the Kansas side of KC, but I went over to the Red X fireworks tent on Monday (after it opened on Sunday), just to see what the prices and selection were like. It's been a while since I bought much retail, but I always found the Red X tent to be among the cheapest tents in the metro area--having the purchasing power of a large corporation behind them gave them a leg up on the family stands.

I was expecting to see what I've been told--prices 20% higher--but man, prices were more like 50% higher this year than last. A 1000 roll of firecrackers, which had been like $7 last year is $10 this year. A basic artillery shell kit that was $24 is now $34. Excalibur was like $160. Even a modest little cake like Bling Bling--normally a $12-$13 cake--was $19.95!

I feel sorry for people having to buy retail fireworks this year. You can spend $50 on two fountains and a 200 gram cake, easy.

I have an old friend who works for National Public Radio. I tipped him off to the fireworks shortage this year, so he did this piece last week:

Good Luck Finding Fireworks (https://www.npr.org/2021/06/16/1007337940/good-luck-finding-fireworks)

[Salutecake]

So, does anyone have a real break down of the 20 to 50% cost increase that everyone is talking about. Product cost increase from manufactures? Shipping cost increases, transportation, ship to shore? Retail markup increases?

[upNdown]

Shipping cost increases combined with inability to actually get shipping containers from china have caused the increases. Just this week, my favorite retailer marked up some of his shell kits another ten or twenty bucks. It's almost tough to complain, because he had the best prices in town - tough to beat a 5 inch shell kit for $80, retail. So now they're $100. To me, this says that either he's going to have a hard time getting more of these items to sell in the future, or maybe that he knows he's going to sell everything he has before the 4th, or maybe both. It's kind of freaking me out. Everybody has been saying that next year will be worse, so the last time I was there, I actually thought about grabbing a case for next year, at $80 a box. And now, ten minutes later, they're $100 a box. Yikes.

[RalphieJ]

Well, I just viewed a video of the Mom and Pop store that I utilize in NE Pa., and they're stocked to the gills, although VERY busy. I was pleasantly surprised. Many large mortar kits and 200, 350, 500 gram cakes, with expedited shipments arriving more frequently. Costs do appear to be somewhat increased (but nothing near to what I had expected), but hey, the consumer has to bear the brunt of increased shipping costs and product demand.

[crayzkirk]

Made my trip this weekend, my normal store had plenty of stock however the items were limited. They also indicated that what was on the shelves was all that they had.

So, there are shortages and who knows what will happen next year.

[jknepp1954]

WE AT KNEPPY'S FIREWORKS are starting to run out of a few things. Although still an excellent lot of choices...a few bare spots. our guys are constantly stocking to keep things full on the shelf.
We do wholesale as well - that is CLOSED for the next 2 months until we see where we are at.

[caleb90]

Well, I just viewed a video of the Mom and Pop store that I utilize in NE Pa., and they're stocked to the gills, although VERY busy. I was pleasantly surprised. Many large mortar kits and 200, 350, 500 gram cakes, with expedited shipments arriving more frequently. Costs do appear to be somewhat increased (but nothing near to what I had expected), but hey, the consumer has to bear the brunt of increased shipping costs and product demand.

might i ask name of the store?

[crayzkirk]

I'm having trouble finding fuse... I want to string a few mortar shells together and everywhere I look, it's sold out.

Yeah, prices on new items was up a bit. Last year's 24 pack of mortar shells were $68 and this year's were $102. This is a little bit of apples to oranges as the new shells were the double breakers and/or mine effect shells which are more expensive anyway.

Going to head to a local PyroCity and pick up a few rockets/fountains and see if they have fuse. I'm seeing the error of my ways of not planning this better. Their prices are about 33% higher than what I'm used to. Want to try some of the Black Cat canister shells with the mine effect.

[crayzkirk]

Made the trip; $130 for the Black Cat 5" cannister shell kit. Got a special 6 pack of shells for $40. Got two sets of rockets for $19 and $29. Bull Run for $16. Bug Zapper for $13. And they had fuse. Only green.

How did I spend $1000 on fireworks? Why am I finding ways to light them faster and get rid of the money?

Fireworks are awesome, I remember when they change around 1970. Before then, you didn't want a black cat going off in your fingers. No mortars and rockets were wimpy.

I still find it hard to believe that I can walk into a store and buy that much powder...

Yabadabado!