\n<\/p>\n
\u201cIt forces you to grow,\u201d he says. \u201cWe have to do more business to make up for it.\u201d<\/p>\n
In New Orleans, cocktail bar Cure founder Neal Bodenheimer also did not want to increase menu prices.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re still a neighborhood bar,\u201d Bodenheimer says. \u201cWe have to make sure that our pricing is fair and competitive.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bodenheimer says he\u2019s adjusting portions, like one less deviled egg per platter or rearranging the measurements of a batched cocktail. \u201cIt\u2019s like you\u2019re in a recording studio and you\u2019re turning the levels up and down on the master board,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
Many of Cure\u2019s products are imported\u2014German beer, French cheese and Spanish Marcona almonds, which Bodenheimer refuses to substitute. He says some of the tariff burden is shared between the supplier and importer before it reaches the customer.<\/p>\n
According to Expert Market\u2019s 2025 Food & Beverage Industry Report, 60% of food and beverage professionals report being directly affected by tariffs, and 76% of businesses say rising ingredient costs affected profitability.<\/p>\n
For Bodenheimer, there are no domestic equivalents to imported ingredients. \u201cI want to select the best products and I want to serve them to my guests,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
Jamila Wright, cofounder of Brooklyn Tea, imports teas from around the world to sell in her caf\u00e9s and online store, but the combined effects of tariffs and rising shipping costs have made her operations increasingly difficult.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur oolong teas are now in flux, because Taiwan no longer ships to the US due to the high demands around tariffs,\u201d Wright says. \u201cThat just changes our entire menu.\u201d<\/p>\n
Taiwan\u2019s postal service suspended delivering commercial items to the US after the Trump administration ended \u201cDuty-Free de minimis Treatment\u201d in August. All imported goods valued under $800 would be subject to tariffs, according to an article by Reuters.<\/p>\n
The additional costs means Wright would have to charge an extra $10 per ounce of GABA Oolong, raising the price of a five-ounce tin from $65 to $80.<\/p>\n
\u201cA large part of tea culture is storytelling and being able to name that tea estate or that village,\u201d Wright says. \u201cYou lose a little bit of that magic when you have to go through a third party.\u201d<\/p>\n
Researchers from Kiel Institute for the World Economy analyzed over 25 million shipping transactions and found that American importers absorbed 96% of tariffs while foreign exporters absorbed only 4% of the tariff burden.<\/p>\n
In Sacramento, Charley Phung, cofounder of Chlo\u00e9 C\u00e0 Ph\u00ea, imports coffee and tea from Vietnam without a broker or importer. He says buying directly from producers has helped him absorb a 20% tariff.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re actually saving a little bit because we\u2019re buying direct,\u201d Phung says. \u201cBut on top of us buying direct, a lot of our competitors are getting priced out of the market.\u201d<\/p>\n
Phung says he built his business throughout 2024 with the Trump administration\u2019s tariffs in mind and priced his menu accordingly.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe priced everything in a way where we don’t have to raise costs,\u201d Phung says. \u201cNow all these other shops around us are adjusting after the administration raised tariffs. We just look like a regular shop.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wright says online orders helped Brooklyn Tea survive during the early days of COVID-19 and still serve as a major stream of revenue, helping offset the recent loss in profit.<\/p>\n
\u201cI actually don\u2019t know how people do a stand-alone shop without online sales,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
Wright has seen decreased demand in recent months because of how customers are modifying spending habits to deal with inflation. \u201cPeople\u2019s appetite for casual spending decreased,\u201d she says. \u201cMore people are squirreling away their nuts right now.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n