NEW YORK: For 35 years, Deborah Koenigsberger has grown her Manhattan boutique, Noir et Blanc, on high-quality, handpicked clothing, much of it sourced from France.
But this year, her usual trip to Paris Fashion Week is off.
“I can’t go to Paris and order a season’s worth of merchandise and then not be able to bring it in, because the tariffs have taken me to a point where I can’t sell it,” she said.
Koenigsberger said the unpredictability of United States President Donald Trump’s tariffs makes it difficult for small businesses to plan ahead. She described the levies as “punitive”.
Under a trade framework announced in July, the US and the European Union (EU) agreed to impose a flat 15 per cent tariff on most European imports. The move followed earlier threats from Washington to levy tariffs as high as 30 per cent on EU goods.
Koenigsberger’s current collection has avoided the duties because she buys a year in advance. But next season’s purchases could be a different story. This has forced her to rethink how she runs her business and who she employs.
“If this comes to pass, I’m going to have to really sit down and remap and pivot in a way that makes sense,” she said. “Hopefully I can keep my staff, but it’s going to depend on what my bills do.”
Source: CNA
