Retailers paying for consumer spending to decrease are using President Donald Trump’s trade war as a marketing strategy, urging consumers to buy now before tariffs lead to rising prices or potential shortages.
Hosts of private and consumer brands like Beis, Bare Necessities, Fashion Nova and Knix have mentioned tariffs in their marketing campaigns in the weeks since Trump announced plans for sudden, so-called mutual tariffs in dozens of countries.
The administration later temporarily lowered rates in most countries, but the announcement led the retail industry to crisis mode. Experts are widely hoping that consumer spending will decline, creating challenges for businesses large and small who may struggle to survive the storm.
Companies that import goods from China, currently facing a 145% obligation, have suspended or canceled orders, while companies with supply chains in other parts of Asia, such as Vietnam and Cambodia, are currently trying to store inventory as higher tariffs are still suspended.
The exact impact will vary by retailer, sector and brand. But Trump’s trade war has brought existential crisis to many retailers, making money to sell consumer products that are ultimately not alive.
Some brands, such as the nude essentials at lingerie stores, have fully done “pre-turfy sales.” The company offered consumers a discount of about 30% as they told them they were “stocked before the tariffs hit.”
“Tax? No clues. A fair bit? We’ve got you. Save up to 30% before the price changes,” Naked Essentials told the customer via text message. “I didn’t know how to spell tariffs last week, but I know this. Up to 30% off is a good idea!” that said in another message.
While it may seem counterintuitive to brands temporarily lower prices as a tool to raise costs, retailers can do whatever they can to “strengthen their overall finances” ahead of a potential drop in spending, says Sonia Lapinsky, partner and managing director at consulting firm Alixpartners.
“Retailers should do everything they can to get demand as quickly as possible, as possible, because from our perspective, things really fall off the cliff. …We have been seeing very skittish customers since March, around March.
“They don’t want to hand out all the margins right now, but that’s a trade-off, right? It’s better to have 80% of the dollar than having to clear things at the door two months from now. I think they’re really desperately trying to predict what will look like this year and are having a really challenging time.”
For small brands that lack the size and maturity of large counterparts, increasing cash flow before demand drops is important for survival.
The tariffs “I intend to affect all businesses, but I think it will affect them.” [smaller companies] “And more because there are fewer global options from the supply chain,” said Lauren Beitelspacher, a marketing professor at Babson University in Massachusetts.
Some shoppers make purchases before prices rise, which could be the reason that some spending data for March has been better than expected, especially before items of money, such as cars, rise.
“People with the means have heard all of this talk. They have heard some of the ads and are actually shopping, so they can buy it before the prices go up,” Lapinski said.
Other brands, such as package company Beis, did not make overtly pre-customer sales. The brand sends letters to shoppers and it’s not clear whether prices will rise, but prices will remain the same – “for now.”
“Let’s skip corporate speaking. This tariff situation is a complete trash can and we all get burned. Here’s the situation. The cost is rising. Unfortunately, our prices need to follow.” “You’re probably wondering what this means for your cart. Unfortunately, we are as confused as others. Honestly, we are as confused as others. But there’s a change. What kind of changes are there?
In its message, the company leaned on humor, telling shoppers that “we have a spreadsheet in our spreadsheet,” and said it had looked at everything to avoid raising prices, from a “company-wide ramen diet” to only fan accounts. But some of the jokes were subtle calls for action. “If you’re focusing on something, there’s current pricing for now, so now might be a good time to move on.”
Barbara Kahn, a marketing professor at Wharton School, said that since most brands don’t want to alienate their customers based on political beliefs, it’s strategic to rely on humor to discuss politically divisive topics such as tariffs.
“Then they don’t have to side because tariffs are not only an economic mechanism, but also related to political beliefs, as they are trying to get rid of the foul smell,” Khan said. “You see a lot of brands trying to neutralize some of the political statements they’ve made in the past, so I think something like humor just spreads all sorts of political issues and makes it something: “What you have here is, take advantage of that.”
