No End in Sight for Whirlpool’s Availability Issues

Like many other industries, the pandemic has caused major supply chain disruptions for appliance manufacturers. With respect to almost every brand and major appliance type, customers have been left with very limited availability options for months now. Whirlpool, the world’s largest appliance manufacturer, has stopped producing nearly 100 different types of refrigerators so they can catch up on orders of their core models. To make an already bad situation worse for Whirlpool, one of their plants in Tulsa, Oklahoma that produces ranges was recently flooded. How this will impact availability for models made at the plant is not currently known.

Fortunately for Whirlpool, all of the major appliance brands are in a similar situation. Unfortunately, customers are increasingly being told that their desired appliance may not be available for months or even a year. With no sense of certainty on when things will return to normal, retailers are strongly encouraging customers to consider buying sooner than later.