With Typhoon Yagi making landfall, the storm has caused a major disruption in delivery services, leaving many online stores overwhelmed with thousands of pending orders. Meanwhile, residents have been aggressively stocking up on supplies at supermarkets and online community markets in anticipation of the storm.

“I’ve stopped selling for now and am waiting for the storm to pass,” said Vu Huyen, an online produce seller from Cau Giay district, Hanoi, during the typhoon's approach. On a normal day, Huyen processes hundreds of orders from Hanoi customers. However, due to the storm, she found it impossible to secure delivery services from 3pm yesterday. All delivery apps showed no available drivers.

“People are understandably avoiding the streets due to the severe weather,” Huyen explained. She decided to suspend her online sales until after the storm, planning to restock and resume operations once the weather improves.

Pham Phuong Linh, a customer service representative at a large Hanoi produce store, noted that since yesterday afternoon, all her messages to customers have been informing them that their orders will only be delivered on September 8. The delivery system has been completely paralyzed, making it impossible to fulfill orders on the same day.

Linh mentioned that the store usually delivers fresh produce the same day orders are placed. However, due to the storm, deliveries were halted to ensure safety for both delivery personnel and goods. Many orders for that day were canceled, and items that could not be stored were heavily discounted for in-store purchases.

“Today, we’re only processing orders and informing customers that deliveries will resume once the storm has passed,” Linh added. The backlog of orders has reached thousands, with customers being notified that deliveries will be made in the order they were placed.

On social media, numerous online sellers have also announced temporary closures during the storm due to the inability to arrange deliveries.

In contrast, goods at supermarkets and community markets are flying off the shelves. Vendors report that items are selling out almost immediately after being listed.

Le Thi Minh from Linh Dam, Hoang Mai District, Hanoi, shared that by 7am, the supermarket near her home had completely sold out of fresh bread. “It seems people are stocking up on bread in case of power outages during the storm,” Minh noted.

At Aeon Linh Dam supermarket this morning, fresh meat arrived at 9:30am, but within minutes, almost all of it was purchased. Some customers bought dozens of trays of meat at once.

In the online community market in Dai Kim, Hoang Mai, Le Thi Tuyet quickly sold out of 40 kg of American beef brisket, which she had listed for 120,000 VND per 0.5 kg tray. “Normally, I stock enough meat for the entire week. With the storm, residents have been buying up meat for hot pot, so it sold out quickly,” Tuyet explained.

Even more astonishing, Tuyet sold out of 200 free-range eggs within minutes of listing them. “The speed at which residents purchase items is faster than I can read and respond to messages,” she said.

Tuyet noted that while residents usually have the option to shop at supermarkets, local markets, or online stores, during storms, the difficulty of going out and the unavailability of delivery services make online community markets an attractive option. These markets offer delivery directly to residents' doors without additional shipping costs.

Tam An