Tariffs Don’t Just Hit Imports — They Hit Innovation

For small businesses, tariffs don’t just raise costs. They disrupt planning, delay shipments, and squeeze the margins that keep operations running. For a four-person business in Rio Rancho, New Mexico — Mezelmods, which designs and sells pinball accessories and parts — that disruption came fast.

“Last year I had an order of electronic parts from China which was pre-paid and had yet to ship when the tariff nightmare started last March. We ended up paying 35% after delaying the shipment for as long as we could. It was horrible and the results have impacted our margins dramatically.

We also have experienced increased tariffs on our imports from small makers in France, Germany and Switzerland. Just ordinary small businesses with innovative products that Americans love.”

This is a business doing everything right — sourcing specialized components, working with small international partners, and bringing niche, high-quality products to U.S. consumers. But tariffs turned a routine shipment into a financial shock.

Even after delaying the order as long as possible, they were still hit with a 35% tariff on goods they had already paid for. That’s the part often overlooked: tariffs don’t just affect future decisions — they hit businesses retroactively, after orders are placed and money is already committed.

And in many cases, innovation suffers. Small businesses are less able to experiment, expand product lines, or take risks when the cost of importing can change overnight.

Now, as small businesses begin to receive refunds on certain tariffs, there is some relief. But the uncertainty remains. Refunds don’t fix the instability that made it impossible to plan in the first place.

We will continue fighting to ensure that new tariffs don’t put small businesses in these situations — where a single shipment can suddenly become unaffordable, and where working with innovative global partners becomes a liability instead of an opportunity.

If your business has been impacted by tariffs, add your name and sign the letter. The more voices we have, the clearer the message: these policies have real consequences, and small businesses are the ones paying the price.

We Pay the Tariffs has also launched a new survey on small business tariff impacts, the IEEPA refunds/process, and future tariff expectations. Please help us reach our (lofty) goal of 500 respondents by May 15 by answering the survey now and/or sharing it with other impacted small businesses.