“User busy."

That’s the message that popped up Tuesday when I dialed the customer service number for SeriousPuzzles.com, a Delran-based online retailer that boasts over 1,660 available jigsaw puzzles on its website and ships products internationally. On the second try, I got through.

I had recently completed my third puzzle in a week, and was searching for another challenge. But a trip to Target, then Walmart, yielded only empty shelves.

Puzzle makers in New Jersey are trying to catch up with the increased demand for their product amid the coronavirus.Avalon Zoppo

And it seems I’m not alone.

In New Jersey, and across the country, there has been an increased demand for the brain teasers, with people yearning for ways to combat boredom, find comfort and unplug amid anxious coronavirus quarantines.

“This is the largest sales volume we’ve ever had since we’ve been in business. It’s a double Christmas time with no preparation. As a retailer, you spend all year preparing for that,” said Adam Moore, who co-owns SeriousPuzzles.com with his brother Spencer. “It’s odd. But it’s a wonderful activity for people to do while they’re home."

Transactions are up about 10 times compared to same day sales from last year, Moore said.

And in response, the company has doubled fulfillment staff by hiring recently laid off South Jersey residents to meet the growing orders. The company’s Delran facility remains open, but is limiting shift sizes, doing deep cleaning and keeping employees at least six feet apart.

Moore said the company expects to hire 20 workers in total, welcome news in a state that saw 156,000 unemployment claims last week amid the economic fallout from the outbreak. Employees who can’t work remotely are being paid 1.5 times their normal wage and all are receiving a paid subscription to a grocery delivery service, in addition to other perks.

“For every spot, we maybe get 80 to 100 resumes within 24 hours easily,” Moore said.

Kelly Moore, the social media and content manager for SeriousPuzzles.com, stands in front of a stocked shelf.Adam Moore

The company says customers should expect up to a seven-day shipping delay, though it is working around the clock to fill requests.

“Especially, in these uncertain times, people are finding comfort through our products. This is deeply satisfying to us and we want to continue to be there for our customers as long as we can,” the company wrote in a statement on its website.

In Atlantic County, Donna Brown has seen a similar surge.

Brown, the self-proclaimed “Puzzle Queen,” opened her Richland business, Missing Piece Puzzle Company, about 13 years ago because she wanted to make brain games that her autistic son could relate to. Customers can upload their own photos to her website and buy a custom-made puzzle.

On Tuesday morning, Brown said she woke up to about 100 orders, similar to her usual holiday surge. She has seen a big jump in gift-related purchases, with people shipping personalized puzzles to grandparents or significant others as a way to stay connected.

“Everybody is sending pictures of their family and their vacation photos. They’re writing really sweet notes like ‘We miss you Grandma’ or ‘We love you Grandma,’” she said. “For grandparents who are in a nursing home or assisted living home, this is one of the ways they can keep in touch.”

Brown sent her staff home on March 13 with pay, and has since been creating the puzzles with just her son and boyfriend out of the Richland facility.

Puzzles at the Millburn Target on March 18, 2020.Patti Sapone

As for the reason behind the surge, Moore and Brown have a few ideas.

One is simple: Isolationists are stuck at home, and puzzles are a wholesome, family-friendly activity to fill the time.

But Moore says social media may have played a factor too. Multiple celebrities have posted Instagram photos of their puzzling adventures, like Ellen Degeneres and Brooke Shields.

“That may have lit the fire,” he said.

For Brown, the answer is obvious.

People want to step away from their electronics and unwind from the hectic, coronavirus-related news cycle.

“There’s only so much television one can watch," she said. “You just kind of lose yourself in (a puzzle). I think we’re all a little overloaded, so opening up a box with a face on it, (my son and I) sit there and put it together and he’s smiling. It’s a good way to escape.”

Dylan Young, a fulfillment specialist for SeriousPuzzles.com, works as the company tries to keep up with an unprecedented number of orders.Adam Moore

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Avalon Zoppo may be reached at azoppo2@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @AvalonZoppo. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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