2020 Fireworks Production Update
Between factory explosions, Chinese New Year, and the Coronavirus we can expect a little delay in fireworks manufacturing for 2020. Read below for a more detailed 2020 fireworks production update!
Explosions:
As some are aware, in December of 2019 there were explosions at two separate fireworks factories in Liuyang, China. (Liuyang is considered the birthplace of the firework and is where the majority of today’s fireworks are still produced.) The Chinese government immediately halted all manufacturing in fireworks factories while these explosions were investigated. All factories were then required to re-apply for their manufacturing licenses, which is a time consuming process. This situation crossed over into Chinese New Year when factories shut down for holiday at the end of January.
Many factories will not receive permits to re-open under the new stricter rules and regulations. However the good new is that our main factories, including our Widow factory, have already received their permits to begin production immediately once the government allows workers to return to the factories. The fact that our main factories already received permits speaks volumes about the quality and safety of the product our partner factories produce.
Read more about the explosion here.
Coronavirus:
The city of Liuyang has had four confirmed cases of the virus. In an attempt to keep it contained heavy restrictions have been put in place by the government, particularly around traveling outside the home. All fireworks factories have been shut down and instructed that manufacturing will be delayed until at least February 20th (moved from the previous date of February 9th).
Read more about the Coronavirus impact here.
What this means:
At this time we can expect a 4-5 week delay on containers, moving our final arrivals back to approximately the first of May. This of course could change as the situation on the ground in China can change suddenly without notice. We are monitoring this closely and will continue to update you with more information as we receive it directly from our manufacturers.
Stay tuned for more information on exciting new additions to the RGS Lineup! Get a glimpse of new products by checking out our NEW for 2020 Category HERE!
Sincerely,
The RGS Team