By definition, Alanis Morissette's prolific track 'Ironic' is anything but.
Rain on a wedding day? Less of an irony and more simple bad lack. In the case of COVID-19 however, it continues to present heartbreaking instances by the moment.
Nowhere is this more apparent than the supply of merchandise.
The constrained supply of Chinese-manufactured finished goods, including apparel and footwear, will lead to revenue losses of 10% this year.
That's the word from Pwc, which has conducted economic analysis on the impact of COVID-19 on retailers.
The reliance on single-source markets such as China, where the majority of apparel and footwear imports is sourced, has exposed vulnerabilities around delivery, supplier diversity and carriers.
In an earlier piece with Ragtrader, Tony Bianco director Anthony Bianco joined a multitude of retailers in addressing stock delays as a result of the pandemic.
Bianco said winter orders in particular would be impacted.
“The biggest thing is the time factor now. Everyone normally gets their winter deliveries in February/March as our key season.
“Luckily enough we had a lot of winter deliveries pre-Chinese New Year.
“But winter you’ll find will be massively delayed I’d imagine for a lot of people who won’t have winter product."
Ironically, stock delays have been as prevalent as stock cancellations.
Global retail brands have canned orders worth more than $3 billion in Bangladesh, with the Bangladeshi government injecting a $588 million stimulus package to buoy the sector.
While brands such as Kmart and Cotton On, which pulled a decision to cancel products worth $18 million, have reversed this stance, others have not.
David Jones made headlines for immediately cancelling numerous designer orders, with jac + jack revealing a $250,000 hit and Lee Mathews also socked in the six figures.
At a time when footwear and apparel sales have fallen amid essentials purchasing, the painful irony is not lost.
One hand taketh and the other revoke.