adminMs Stella Dongo said in an interview that the huge demand was a result of the promotions that the firm carried out last year.
This was worsened by inadequate raw materials from local and external supplies.
TN Harlequin, a subsidiary of TN Holdings, embarked on three promotions last year, which included a zero percent deposit for civil servants in June and a 50 percent discount on cash purchases in October.
From these promotions, Ms Dongo said the company sold goods to more than 30 000 customers.
“We were overwhelmed by customers who signed on for the promotions,” said Ms Dongo.
“We sold various furniture products to 30 021 clients and only 440 clients are yet to receive their orders but we are hoping to clear this soon.
“The demand was higher than we anticipated. This was then compounded by some challenges in relation to supply of raw materials. Our suppliers both local and external could not meet our requirements.”
TN imports raw materials such as bedsprings from South Africa. It said out of about 5 000 units that it had ordered, the supplier delivered only 900.
The supply of teakwood in Matabeleland also remains low as local producers are gradually moving to full-scale commercial production.
Some TN Harlequin customers were not getting deliveries of their orders on time even on products they had paid cash for.
Ms Dongo, however, said there was a provision to refund clients who are feeling shortchanged.
She said the company was putting in place measures to ensure adequate supplies of raw materials.
“We have acquired a spring company with capacity of 80 units a day and also a company which manufactures form.
“On our current promotion, we are only selling items on the floor (that are readily available) to avoid further backlogs.”
Online Reporter