Far too often, as a society we forget that celebrities are truly just people with what is likely a more interesting job than our own. Celebrities are business owners, consumers, and even suppliers which means that they are not truly impervious to supply chain disruptions and inflation no matter how much wealth or influence they may have.

This fact could be seen firsthand just the other day when an incredibly famous and equally humorous female rapper chose to criticize the rising costs of lettuce and highlight her dissatisfaction with the produce supply chain in a heated video on social media.

Cardi B, famed rapper and women empowerment icon, shared a video on Twitter on January 4th slamming rising grocery prices — particularly when it comes to lettuce, “Lettuce that was $2 a couple of months ago is now f***ing $7, of course, I’m going to say something. The f***? I think that s*** is crazy,” she said.

Although Cardi B may be the most recent celebrity to complain about unreliable suppliers, hundreds of celebrity entrepreneurs including Ryan Reynolds, Lizzo, Jennifer Aniston, and Gabrielle Union also know the struggles caused by these supply chain dilemmas and unreliable suppliers. As such, what was once a problem solely for supply chain market professionals has now become a pop culture topic and the big-name suppliers that once reigned supreme are at last being replaced by smaller, diverse, and more reliable alternatives as a result.

To show how this celebrity attention benefits small suppliers and redefines the supply chain market as a whole, let’s take a closer look at what caused the increases that left Cardi B saying ‘I DON’T Like It’ online.

The Supply Chain Disruption Dilemma — and its Effect on Everything

While lettuce may be what left Cardi B in a tizzy, it’s hardly the only thing that’s been affected by supply chain mismanagement in the last few years. In fact, we even wrote an entire article on supply chain disruptions that directly affected women last year. But, supply chain disruptions have also affected other aspects of our society beyond simple products and delivery times:

• 6.2 million people did not work at all or worked fewer hours because their employer closed or lost business due to supply chain disruptions from the pandemic
• Supply chain disruptions from the pandemic resulted in the permanent closure of roughly 200,000 U.S. establishments above historical levels.
• Across the sample, 41.3% of businesses reported that they were temporarily closed because of COVID-19 supply chain issues.
• 61% of small businesses said their supply chains have been disrupted, and many more lost their companies because of these setbacks.
• 91% of customers prefer small businesses when convenient.
• New consumer demand trends are redefining the supply chain.

The ‘Butterfly Effect’ of these disruptions has had a profound effect on everything from the job market and employee turnover to customer satisfaction and consumer trends. While this is horrible news for big businesses and the massive suppliers they partner with, it also means that local suppliers and small business owners, at last, have a chance at competing without the need for a seat at the ‘big dogs’ table’ to do so.

When even celebrities are tired of these inflated prices and unreliable overseas suppliers, there’s only one answer: companies must change their supply chain management and procurement strategies to meet the needs of their customers — or face the music, literally.

Fortunately, if small, diverse, and local suppliers can connect with the companies that need them now more than ever, these consumer demands can be met and companies can finally overcome the supply chain dilemmas holding them back for years.

How Local Suppliers can Show That ‘All the Rumors are True’

The biggest trend in customer spending that has stemmed from the supply chain disruptions of the pandemic is the desire to shop small and spend more if necessary. Consumers are opting for quality over quantity and choosing to work with reliable smaller companies that can meet their needs even when big brands can’t.

For small business owners and suppliers, this is a dream come true. However, it still can be difficult for these companies to find one another and connect. And, it only gets worse the bigger a company is.

Knowing this, the question isn’t whether or not small suppliers are best for consistent communication and product quality but rather how to best find these local, small, and diverse options without exhausting your efforts and breaking the bank.

This is where the Stimulus Relationship Intelligence Platform comes into play. To create those deeper connections and develop the right supplier relationships, there is nothing easier than letting a data-driven decision-making platform do it for you.

As the product page explains, “SRIP combines data insights, relationship-building tools, and a proprietary score to help companies make the best purchasing decisions while optimizing and growing their supplier network.”

And, while it may seem like a blatant advertisement for our own platform, the truth is that our team is composed of data and supply chain experts with decades of experience and a deep understanding of what setbacks suppliers and businesses face when trying to connect. These insights are what helped to develop this platform in the first place — and it’s why we know that our platform is the best way to increase diverse and localized supplier procurement that still meets the needs of the consumer and brand.

So, instead of letting celebrities like Cardi B complain about your brand or product quality, why not redefine your supply chain network with the modern consumer in mind and stand out from the competition in doing so? Now, that’s some ‘Hot Sh*t.’