Chain Reactions

EARLY THIS JANUARY AFTER A long search, Laura Kastner, a 27-year-old consultant living in New York City, found her dream couch: a plush, Joybird brand L-shaped sectional. “It gave me butterflies when I pictured myself laying on it.” She ordered it on January 3 and was told it would be delivered in six weeks. It wasn’t. Now, it’s due on March 16th. The reason? “We are working through delays,” the company told her.

A lot of Americans have been having similar experiences lately. “A sofa is a good microcosm of how everything in the supply chain is impacted,” according to Mark Schumacher,