‘Can This Be Right?’: Reddit’s Small Business Community Is Freaking Out Over Trump’s Tariffs

President Donald Trump has dubiously claimed helium wants to beryllium the champion of America’s moving class, but his caller commercialized policies look much apt to termination tiny businesses and enactment plentifulness of moving men and women retired of business.

Indeed, Trump’s tariff policies aren’t conscionable terrifying Wall Street. They’re besides freaking retired tiny concern owners, arsenic tin beryllium seen by a abrupt glut of comments connected Reddit’s r/smallbusiness subreddit. There, tiny concern owners tin beryllium seen fretting implicit everything from skyrocketing import duties to the accrued costs that they volition person to walk connected to their customers.

One evident concern proprietor who precocious ordered aluminum parts from China expressed amazement astatine the abrupt escalation successful import fees. User “eopcido” wrote:

We person a tiny concern and ordered $3,380 worthy of aluminum parts from China. Parts entered USA connected 3/31/25. DHL requires $2,483.21 for “import duty” oregon they volition nonstop backmost the parts 5 days…Can this beryllium right?

A commenter explained the recently added costs to the concern owner: “You tin expect to adhd 34% to each aboriginal orders, with the anticipation of an further 50% summation aft this week. This brings the full imaginable summation to 156.5%.”

“In lawsuit everyone hasn’t figured it retired yet, Trump and Co don’t privation america buying thing from China anymore,” different commenter noted.

Another Redditor, who said that they ain a retail store, explained how the expected import prices could wholly upend their business: “We are looking astatine anyplace from 20%-60%,” they said, seemingly referencing terms increases. “That volition perfectly destruct my business. Im ace worried.” Keep successful mind, these comments were coming earlier China added an additional 84 percent tariff connected Tuesday night.

Background-pickle389, said that their bamboo covering concern would “likely person to close” owed to the exponential summation successful costs spurred by the tariffs:

Does anyone person immoderate American based manufacturers? I’m devastated that each my hard enactment is going to beryllium pulled retired from underneath. I conscionable deed my 10,000 bid past week and don’t cognize what to bash now. My store is excessively tiny to sorb the outgo of it all, but I cognize raising prices isn’t feasible since our outgo of surviving is astir to spell astronomically high.

Another user, Coachellahopefull, explained their ain predicament with a European import concern they’d built up:

My uncle owns a pottery workplace successful Poland, my ma and I person been wholesaling the merchandise present successful the US for the past 20 years. We’ve been holding our enactment waiting to spot what the tariffs were going to be. It looks similar it’s going to beryllium 20% for European products. We person 2 containers connected the mode to the US close now, 50% of the merchandise already is sold and we cannot alteration the pricing connected it. This volition beryllium truthful detrimental to our institution and I conscionable don’t cognize what we should do.

Many users person discussed adding “tariff charge” enactment items to their receipts truthful that customers recognize the accrued prices are a effect of the Trump administration’s economical policies, not random terms gouging. On 1 tiny concern owner’s thread, a commenter said: “Let radical cognize it’s tariffs that are astatine responsibility for your higher prices. If it’s true, it passes immoderate of the blasted from you to the administration, which tin assistance alteration things. A batch of radical don’t ticker the news, and they should cognize that it’s straight affecting them.”

One misinformed idiosyncratic made the unfortunate determination to create a post asking chap r/smallbusiness Redditors whether they thought Trump’s tariffs would “help tiny concern owners.” The retribution was ruthless and swift.

“LOL,” 1 idiosyncratic posted. “LMFAO.”

“This is simply a dumb fucking question,” different chimed in.

“It volition decidedly assistance immoderate businesses,” different added. “Mainly bankruptcy lawyers and undertakers.”