Severe weather can significantly impact retail businesses' supply chains, infrastructure, sales, and operating costs. That is why your business must be informed and prepared for the dangers of severe weather.

By Jill King Greenwood, Marketing Manager

Published Feb 6, 2026 1:58 PM EDT | Updated Feb 6, 2026 1:58 PM EDT

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Empty produce shelves are at the Kroger in Brentwood, Tenn., on January 23, 2026. A winter storm is expected to hit the state over the weekend. (Photo by Camden Hall/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

It may still be winter, but it’s never too early to talk about spring. Warmer, nicer weather is coming, but spring storms can also bring severe weather that could significantly impact your business. It’s proven that AccuWeather’s severe weather warnings help businesses stay safer, better prepared, and protect against major profit losses.

Business Weather Worries

Severe weather can significantly impact a businesses' supply chains, infrastructure, sales, and operating costs. That is why your business must be informed and prepared for the dangers of severe weather. AccuWeather For Business is here to help. Here is a checklist of actions you can take to prepare for and mitigate the impacts of severe weather on your retail business:

Closely Monitor Weather Reports

Monitor weather reports and forecasts to anticipate upcoming weather conditions and prepare accordingly. By monitoring the system, your business can plan for staffing and inventory and adjust promotional activities. AccuWeather SkyGuard® Warnings clients will receive warnings about severe weather before, during, and after the storm and one-on-one consultations with a storm warning meteorologist.

Create Emergency and Contingency Plans

Develop a contingency plan for when severe weather conditions threaten store closures, supply chain disruptions, or power outages. This plan should include communication strategies informing employees, customers, and suppliers of store hours or operations changes. If your business doesn’t have a severe weather plan, AccuWeather For Business can help you develop one.

Secure Store Infrastructure

Make sure your building is secure. Install shutters, reinforce windows and doors, and secure outdoor signs to prevent damage to your building and others. In May 2025, tornadoes in London, Kentucky reduced homes and businesses to piles of shredded wood and debris, downed power lines, tossed cars and caused extensive damage to businesses throughout the area that were caught off-guard.

Stock Up on Weather-Related Products

Ensure your business has enough stock of weather-related items such as generators, flashlights, and bottled water to meet customer demand in dealing with the impacts of severe weather. By stocking up on supplies, your business could increase profits by having the supplies on hand when customers need them the most, while your competitors do not.

Train Employees

Train employees on your emergency and contingency plans. If possible, conduct severe weather drills so they know how to respond to keep themselves and your customers safer. Provide them with resources to help them respond to customers' inquiries and concerns.

A pothole is on a street in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on February 3, 2026. (Photo by Graham Hughes/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Business Continuity

AccuWeather for Business helps organizations move from knowing weather is coming to understanding impacts, applying it to your exact locations and taking action—earlier, with more confidence, and with fewer surprises.

Most organizations believe they’re covered because they receive publicly available warnings, said Don Coash, AccuWeather meterologist and Director of Sales. "The one thing I hear from many decision-makers is the challenge of knowing when to make decisions to take action. Many organizations struggle with visibility into how will this storm impact my business, my locations, my supply chain, my customers, during widespread disruptive events."

False alarms are costly and they disrupt operations and damage credibility. That's where AccuWeather helps, Coash said. On average, AcccuWeather helps organizations reduce costly false alarms by 77 percent—while still maintaining a strong safety posture.

"That allows you to quickly communicate accurate information to your teams and avoid unnecessary shutdowns and overall warning fatigue. Your credibility is restored," Coash said.

A Devastating Spring in 2025

AccuWeather long-range experts expect a much different severe weather profile this year compared to the destructive spring of 2025. The economic impacts of severe weather last spring were staggering.

AccuWeather experts say a rare atmospheric river that funneled extreme rainfall into the central U.S., combined with a multiday severe weather and tornado outbreak last April, caused an estimated $80 billion to $90 billion in total damage and economic loss.

A deadly severe weather outbreak that brought more than 70 tornadoes, destructive hail and powerful wind gusts to the central U.S. last May caused $9 billion to $11 billion in total damage and economic loss, according to an estimate from AccuWeather experts.

“This spring has the potential for high-impact weather, even though we expect fewer tornadoes,” Pastelok explained. “Flooding and damaging winds will be the main hazards this spring. The slower pace of the jet stream could lead to a higher frequency of upper-level low pressure areas, producing heavier rainfall amounts, resulting in storms that are more disruptive and impactful.”

“There will likely be fewer tornadoes and hail reports this spring, especially compared to last spring. Storms with damaging straight-line winds will likely be a more frequent threat,” Pastelok said. “Flooding is the main hazard this spring, especially with the slower-moving storms that are expected.”

There were 1,559 tornadoes reported across the U.S. in 2025, above the 15-year historical average of 1,392 tornadoes annually.

AccuWeather’s SkyGuard Severe Weather Warnings

Be proactive with AccuWeather SkyGuard® Warnings with proven Superior Accuracy™ deliver hyperlocal, site-specific alerts and warnings with often more advance notice, before severe weather hits, giving you more time to prepare.

As an example of AccuWeather’s proven Superior Accuracy™, for tornadoes, on average, AccuWeather provides 16 minutes of advance notice compared to an average of only eight minutes from the National Weather Service. In some cases, we often provide much more advance notice.

Businesses that invest in AccuWeather’s SkyGuard Severe Weather Warnings also get access to a team of expert severe weather meteorologists, 24x7x365. AccuWeather does not just send you a warning; we confirm that you have received it, so you can make the best weather-impacted decisions for your business every time.

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