For Cat in the Bag, LLC in New Castle, Pennsylvania, the IEEPA tariffs were an existential threat. The company paid 50% tariffs for six months to receive inventory from India — resulting in between $60,000 and $70,000 in additional tariff costs .   For a small business, that is not a margin squeeze. That is survival on the line. As the company explains:   “Faced with this enormous increase in tariffs, we had options of abandoning our inventory in India and wrecking our rela

Ganesh Himal Trading is a fair-trade import business that has worked with artisans in Nepal since 1984 . For more than 40 years, the business has operated on long-term relationships, ethical sourcing, and stable pricing for customers. That stability unraveled over the past year .   Under the IEEPA tariff regime, Ganesh Himal Trading paid between $5,000 and $10,000 or more per shipment — and received six shipments subject to those tariffs . Each shipment meant another unexpec

When Vargas, LLC, a small business in Arizona, paid $9,430.00 in additional tariffs under IEEPA , there was no choice. The candle and soap business absorbed months of rising material costs — wax, fragrance oils, packaging, and other essential inputs. Margins disappeared. Prices had to rise. Sales fell. Three production employees were laid off . Revenue collapsed.   Now, the Supreme Court has struck down the IEEPA tariffs. That ruling was a critical victory. But for Vargas, LL

A small manufacturer in Michigan designs and produces sewn products in the United States, supporting U.S. jobs and building products locally . Like many manufacturers, the company sources inputs from a mix of U.S. and international suppliers. But some of the materials they need simply aren’t available in the U.S. today .   When tariffs raise the cost of those essential inputs, the impact is immediate. The added costs don’t reflect a change in how or where the company manufact

In North Carolina, an eyewear company has been manufacturing in the United States for nearly eight decades: designing, producing, and assembling eyewear domestically.   But even a company with that history can’t escape today’s tariff reality. As the business explained:   “We are a fully integrated manufacturer of eyewear in the U.S. since 1947. We import a lot of raw materials and components that simply aren’t made in the U.S. ”   That reality leaves the company paying tarif

For a third-generation, family-owned company in Ohio that wholesales and manufactures equine products, tariffs have gone from a manageable cost to an existential threat.   The business supplies equine products to many other small companies across the United States — a supply chain built over decades. Before 2018, tariffs averaged around 3%. That changed dramatically with the China Section 301 tariffs, which pushed rates to 25%. Now, the latest round of tariffs has pushed the

A sole proprietor who designs and hand-builds craft amplifiers entirely in the United States expected that making products domestically would shield the business from trade disruptions. Instead, rising tariff-driven input costs have made it harder than ever to keep building here .   Every amplifier is designed, assembled, and tested in the U.S. — but the electronic components required to build them are sourced globally, and many simply aren’t made domestically at any viable s

For Harding Autoparts Systems (APS), a 12-employee company based in Denver, tariffs are doing far more than raising the cost of steel and equipment. They are shrinking the entire pipeline of construction projects the company depends on.   Harding APS supplies mechanical parking systems and steel components used in real estate developments nationwide. This year, the company has paid over $500,000 in additional tariffs — but the most damaging impact is what happens after those

In Missouri City, Texas, a manufacturing company with fewer than 50 employees is doing exactly what policymakers often say they want: producing goods in the United States . Yet this year, the company has paid more than $1 million in additional tariffs . The reason is straightforward. While final production happens domestically, some raw materials must be sourced overseas — inputs that simply aren’t available in the U.S. at the scale or specifications required. As the company

Cosmodio Instruments is a five-person company in Bedford, Massachusetts, designing and hand-assembling electronic musical instruments in the United States. It’s exactly the kind of small manufacturing business policymakers often say they want to support . But tariffs are making that work harder, not easier. While Cosmodio designs, builds, and assembles its products domestically, it relies on materials like PCBs and electronic components that are largely unavailable in the U.S

Babco Foods International, a New Jersey–based company, has spent more than two decades building a stable business. This year, that stability has unraveled — not because of falling demand or mismanagement, but because of  tariffs that have drained the company’s cash flow at an unprecedented rate . Babco shared the reality they are facing : “Babco Foods is suffering huge cash-flow issues as a result of paying 50% in tariff on goods imported from India. We are a 22-year-old comp

In Lakeville, Massachusetts, a small spirits importer distributes French spirits to customers in  40 states . Nearly  95% of the business  depends on imports from France — a model that worked for years under stable trade and currency conditions. This year, that stability disappeared.   The company is now facing a  15% tariff  on imported spirits —  on top of a 12–15% loss from currency exchange rates . Together, those forces have created cost increases that simply can’t be pa

For a small brewery and café in Bellingham, Washington, recent trade “deals” and reduced tariff rates haven’t brought relief. They’ve simply locked in   higher costs   that are still difficult — and in some cases impossible — for a small business to absorb.   The brewery produces about  500 barrels a year  and imports malt directly from a German maltster. Even at a  15% tariff , combined with a  10% decline in the value of the U.S. dollar , the cost of malt has risen sharply

Cephalofair Games, a seven-person company based in Rocklin, California, designs and publishes board games enjoyed by families around the world. It’s a U.S. company that hires U.S. workers — and one that has been hit hard by sudden tariff swings.   As the company shared: “ Tariff volatility has meant job eliminations, company-wide furloughs, and product delays . We are a U.S. Company. We have U.S. employees. We have U.S. families. WE pay these U.S. imposed Tariffs.”   For a bu

A small company that sells housewares and sewing supplies primarily to schools operates under a common but rigid system:  year-long state contracts . Once those contracts are signed, prices are locked in — even if costs change months later. That’s exactly what happened when tariffs took effect.   Most school orders arrive  eight months after contracts are signed , long after suppliers began raising prices. Some increases were steep —  20% to 40%  — even on products labeled “M

For HOBO Bags, a women’s accessories company designing and selling handbags across the U.S., tariffs are no longer a marginal cost. They are a defining feature of the business.   In  2025 alone , tariffs added  $1.5 million in unplanned costs . And the pressure is accelerating — in  2026 , the company is already tracking  $1.1 million in tariff costs in just the first quarter . These aren’t abstract projections. They’re real dollars pulled away from operations, inventory plan

In Kirbyville, Missouri — a rural community in southwest Missouri — VHC Brands, Inc .  employs 23 people designing, importing, and distributing home décor products sold across the United States. The company’s products are sourced in India, a supply chain built over years and not easily replaced.   But in recent months, tariffs have become an overwhelming burden. The company shared this reality: “The tariffs are drafted directly from our checking account by U.S. Customs and Bo

Austri Aura, a small gift shop in Woodstock, Illinois, is just over two years old — a point when many small businesses are ready to take their next step: hiring help, expanding offerings, and investing back into their operations. But tariff uncertainty has put that progress on hold.   The owner explained the situation simply: “My business is just a little over two years old and has been growing to the point I need to hire an employee. But with the uncertainty of tariffs, I ca

In Kennesaw, Georgia, a six-person specialty chemical manufacturer is being squeezed by tariffs on raw materials that  are not produced in the United States  — and that cannot be easily replaced.   The company relies on chemical inputs sourced from  China, Japan, and India , materials that simply don’t have domestic alternatives . When tariffs were imposed, the cost didn’t fall on foreign producers. It landed squarely on this small U.S. manufacturer.   They described the impa

For a family-owned business in Anaheim, California, tariffs aren’t a line item that can be absorbed or offset — they’re an immediate threat to survival.   Operating in a highly competitive market with  extremely low margins , this small company prices its products directly based on what it costs to produce them. There’s no cushion. No room to absorb sudden increases.   They explained it plainly: “ As a small company, we are unable to absorb the tariffs . We face extremely low