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Water Sales Spiked, But Still Slow
posted (April 28, 2020)
We also asked about the market demand for water - which is the only thing Bowen was allowed to sell in those strict two weeks of full lockdown.

Marisol Amaya- Krem TV Reporter
"What have been the trends that you've noticed since the start of this crisis? I think there was some talk about people actually hording water initially. How has that played out."

Michael Bowen- CEO/president Bowen and Bowen
"Well, I don't know about the specifications of hording but certainly, the demand went up. And of course, the 5 gallon is where the major demand went up. When people buy a few extra bottles that are not expected in our forecast, those bottles stay home and we don't have them to refill. So, we had to place special emergency orders to get more bottles in so that we can actually fulfill the demand because people just had more in their homes rather than have those bottles flow through the system like they would normally do."

Marisol Amaya
"What do you foresee is going to happen, specifically as it relates to this being another drought year?"

Michael Bowen
"Last year our water production was up but even with the Covid crisis and people trying to get more water, our water sales this month are down. So, I would imagine it's going to be somwhere between a mix of drought causing some of the demand but consumer demand over all across the board and all consumer or fast moving goods has been depressed."

Marisol Amaya
"So, where would you say the highest drop in sales has been? You've already spoken about water. Where else?"

Michael Bowen
"Well beer has been our hardest hit. With all on premise locations having been closed, restaurants have no dining services, bars and clubs have been closed. That is an entire channel and occassion that has essentially stopped. So, some restaurants even if they do take out don't necessarily sell alcohol or drinks with their take out order. So people are having to pick it up at stores. But as you know, stores are limiting the amount of people that can go in and also restrict the amount of visits they do to stores. So, over all, it is harder to get and people with less money in their pockets are just buying more staples and the basics."

Dwayne Moody- Channel 5 reporter
"Where do you see the time frame in terms of recovery for the loss that has been realized?"

Michael Bowen
"I'm not sure there will be a recovery this year. Tourism will continue to take hits as far as I understand. If I am not mistaking there will be no flights in May, it is unlikely that we will have a lot of tourism through all of Q3 [3rd quarter] of 2020, maybe in Q4. There will still be some fear and reluctance of people getting into a small plane and going to a hotel room not knowing who was been in that hotel room before them. Tourism is 40% of our GDP; it is not only is the income that comes from tourism but all the impact of employment that comes along with tourism. That affects every single industry, whether it's our soft drinks and beverages or whether it's agriculture. Across the board, it's going to be a significant hit to the economy."

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