Tariffs, Price Tags and Tough Calls: What the New 145% Tariff Means for You

Lately, we’ve been getting a lot of questions that all boil down to one thing:
“How will these new tariffs affect your prices?”

And trust us, we wish we had a simple answer.

Unfortunately, the only thing predictable about modern tariff policy is that it keeps changing. With a 145% tariff now slapped on a wide range of Chinese-manufactured goods, we’re looking at significant challenges in keeping prices stable, products available and shelves full.

Let’s break down what this really means for us and for you.

What Does a 145% Tariff Really Do?

Let’s say a product we buy from China originally cost $10.
With a 145% tariff, that product now costs us $24.50 before it even gets on a boat. That’s a $14.50 increase on day one.

Add in shipping, customs, handling and overhead? That $10 item might now retail for $40 to $50, depending on the category and markup needed to survive in retail.
And that’s assuming it arrives on time, undamaged and isn’t further delayed by port congestion or customs slowdowns.

Who Pays the Tariff? Spoiler: It’s Not the Country It’s Aimed At

Despite what some politicians may say, tariffs aren’t paid by the exporting country (in this case, China). They’re paid by the importer — that’s us. And unfortunately, we can’t absorb a 145% cost increase on most items and still stay in business.

So yes, that cost increase gets passed down to customers, not because we want to, but because it’s the only way to keep the lights on.

Supply and Demand, Now Playing With Fire

When tariffs spike, prices rise. When prices rise, demand drops. But here’s the kicker — supply also drops, because we’re not the only ones pausing purchases.
Some items will be discontinued. Others will have limited availability. What used to be simple restocks now involve spreadsheets, nail-biting and sometimes tough decisions to drop products entirely.

This creates a chaotic retail environment at a time when, let’s be honest, retail is already hard. Online giants, shrinking margins and customer expectations all make balancing the scales trickier than ever.

“Why Not Just Make It in the USA?”

Great question. The short answer: We’d love to.
The long answer: It’s not that simple.

We all dream of the tagline “Made in America”, but shifting manufacturing from China to the U.S. involves a lot more than flipping a switch. Here’s what it takes:

  • Infrastructure: Factories, equipment and tooling all need to be designed and built or, in the very least, retooled.
  • Workforce: Skilled labor isn’t always immediately available, especially in niche manufacturing sectors.
  • Time: Even fast-tracked, setting up domestic production could take 24–36 months, if not longer.
  • Cost: Labor, materials, insurance and compliance costs in the U.S. are significantly higher than in less developed countries. The final product might still be more expensive than the tariffed import.

Now, some products may shift to countries like Mexico, Vietnam or India. But those transitions still take time and often come with their own trade agreements, risks and logistical puzzles.

Other Factors to Consider

Tariffs are just one piece of the pricing pie. We’re also watching:

  • Shipping costs (which fluctuate constantly)
  • Currency exchange rates
  • Raw material shortages
  • Geopolitical tensions
  • Port backlogs
  • New compliance rules and regulations

All of these factor into final pricing, availability and the decisions we make about what to carry and when.

So What’s Next?

We’re taking a hard look at our inventory and product lines.
Some items may be paused or discontinued altogether.
We’ll do our best to keep things affordable, but we also want to be honest: you will see higher prices on select goods in the months ahead.

We understand that rising costs are making it harder for consumers to afford basic necessities like food, rent and fuel. As prices climb, people are being forced to make tough choices, distinguishing between needs and wants, and often cutting back on discretionary spending. This ripple effect puts pressure on businesses, some of which may not survive the downturn. We remain hopeful that our foundation is strong enough to weather this tariff storm, but only time will tell.

We’re not throwing in the towel. We’re adjusting, adapting and doing everything we can to be transparent with our community.

We appreciate your patience and understanding as we navigate this evolving landscape. And if you ever want to geek out over trade policy or lament the price of widgets with us, we’re here.

Thank you for supporting small business in a big world.
a Snaggy diMe

A Wolf in the Fold

A customer asked us about the difference between Call of the Wolf and Wolf Spirit product lines.

Call of the Wolf is a line produced by Westland Giftware between 2004 and 2016 with wolf figurines in a variety of poses. Wolf Spirit was released in 2017 by Pacific Giftware and the initial figurines are of standing wolves only. The figurines are of the same size with the Wolf Spirit wolves being just a bit smaller, but at the same time more muscular and with greater detail in the teeth and fur.

Take a look at the differences between Westand’s Americana Wolf (left) and Pacific’s American Wolf (right):

Cat Apparel

This weekend we attended the Rocky Mountain Gift Show. Looking at the variety of vendors, we sometimes have to wonder if we’re missing a product line in our business model.

We did not inquire how fitting rooms would work for the target customer base.

Stuffed Stuff

One thing that never seems to go out of style are stuffed animals. Rag dolls representing people and animals date back to Roman times, but the modern version of a stuffed animal did not come around until 1880, when Steiff, a German toy company, reinvented this category of toys. The realistic looking animals with plush fur-like fabric were an instant hit.

The Ideal Novelty and Toy Company copied this success in the United States and, in 1902, their success exploded with the creation of the Teddy Bear, inspired by a story of President Theodore Roosevelt sparing the life of a defenseless black bear while on a hunting trip.

Stuffed toys have been good to us and we are always on the lookout for realistic looking, cute and cuddly animals. And some of our best sellers tend to be the more unusual animals – armadillos, bats, marmots, possums, skunks, squirrels, etc. It seems that everyone already has a bear, a moose and a wolf and while they are not poor sellers, they are easily trounced by the more esoteric members of the animal kingdom.

At the Rocky Mountain Gift Show we met with our suppliers from Stuffed Animal House, Northern Gifts, Fiesta Toy and Wild Republic to talk about product lines and upcoming releases. There is always churn in manufacturer offerings and we pick up the more interesting animals to help them find new homes.

Looking to find an animal companion with low maintenance needs? Come look at our collection!

Stuffed Animal House

Stuffed Animal House offers a wide variety of North American wildlife.

Northern Gifts

Northern Gifts is the king of novelty Canned Critters.

Coming from Northern Gifts

Northern Gifts will be adding new faces to their Canned Critters line in the next few months.

[whohit]2016-03-08 Stuffed stuff[/whohit]

 

Trending to Funny

Zoltar the Fortune Teller

Zoltar the Fortune Teller – we were offered no proof that Zoltar has magical powers.

There’s a little bit of a retro trend that we’re seeing in the market this year, including gifts and collectibles reflective of the 50s and 60s, Victorian style furniture, a bit more lace in clothes.  It’s not a huge wave of change by far, but there’s certainly something about nostalgia out there.

Nostalgia also included movie memorabilia, ranging from modern day blockbusters to old classics and a lot of big names in between.  Hollywood is definitely not dead when it comes to merchandising, even if movie ticket sales have been trending down.  Star Wars was huge this year.  And Frozen is still very popular.

There’s also a lot of humor coming up in signage.  Art prints and posters in 2’ by 3’ size are more prominent and are definitely designed to make you stop, read and laugh.

 

Send More Tourists

Send More Tourists

Every Bite You Take

Every Bite You Take

 

 

Minion

Minion

 

There’s also more nontraditional statuary art out there.  Oversized, uncommon materials, but without a doubt, trending popular themes.

We don’t normally carry the unusual merchandise you see in this post, but if you fall in love with any of the wackadoodle items you see, just give us a yell.  We know people.

[whohit]2016-03-06 Trending to Funny[/whohit]

A Weekend at the Mart

We head out to merchandise and consumer shows on a regular basis to see what’s trending in the market and what manufacturers are getting ready for the coming season.  One of our favorite shows is the Rocky Mountain Gift Show, not only because it’s local, but also because of the broad cross spectrum of the retail market that it attracts.

Rocky Mountain Gift Show

Rocky Mountain Gift Show

The Rocky Mountain Gift Show brings together retail, tourism, jewelry, gift markets, home goods, apparel and many other specialty niches.  The fare ranges from things you’re afraid to touch to things you’re afraid to put down.  And that’s really the excitement of the market.  Not everyone wants taxidermied still life or human-sized animatronic manikins, but there’s also plenty of cute and cuddly that spans the show, as well as down to Earth and functional.

From cute...

From cute…

...to creepy.

…to creepy.

Saturday night the show hosts a banquet for all buyers and exhibitors, showcasing the fashions for the coming season.

Season fashions, courtesy of the Denver Mart.

Season fashions, courtesy of the Denver Mart.

The show is five days long.  It can probably stand to be a few days longer.  It’s hard to hit all of the vendors in this short a time.  We’ll show off some of the cool stuff we’ve seen in the next few days.

[whohit]2016-03-01 A Weekend at the Mart[/whohit]

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Happy Valentine’s Day to all our friends!

We love our customers!

Heart to Heart, Trail of Painted Ponies

Heart to Heart, Trail of Painted Ponies

[whohit]2016-02-14 Happy Valentine’s Day![/whohit]

 

Trail of Painted Ponies Winter 2016 Herd

The 2016 Winter herd of Trail of Painted Ponies is now in and shipping!  Included in the release are Guardian Angel, War Eagle, Little Big Horse, Gift from the Sky and Cloud Hunter.

Trail of Painted Ponies, Winter 2016

Trail of Painted Ponies, Winter 2016

Do you have your ponies yet?

[whohit]2016-02-13 Trail of Painted Ponies Winter 2016 Herd[/whohit]

Happy Chinese New Year!

Happy Chinese New Year!

Year of the Monkey

Year of the Monkey

[whohit]2016-02-08 Year of the Monkey[/whohit]

Happy Groundhog Day!

It’s tradition after all these years that once our Colorado prognosticator, Stormy Marmot, gives his Groundhog Day weather statement, we share it with our friends.

Groundhog Day 2016

Stormy Marmot predicts an early spring!

Once again Stormy is predicting an early spring.  We really have no objections to this as being snowed in does impact the retail world.

You can see Stormy’s full prediction at is site, Marmot Adventures.

Happy Groundhog Day!

And don’t forget, if you want to take on the weathermen, all you really need is your own marmot or groundhog!  We’re here to help you get started.

[whohit]2016-02-02 Happy Groundhog Day![/whohit]