Small business owners are growing concerned as new tariffs could impact their sales while driving up prices for their customers.
Following Trump’s announcement of reciprocal tariffs on Wednesday, a pair of small business owners in Orange County say they are bracing themselves for the fallout from the trade war.
Delilah Snell, owner of Alta Baja, says she had to put her plans of expansion on hold due to the uncertainty in prices and trade.
“I’m a one-woman show. Why am I going to sit there and spend my savings when I don’t know what this is going to look like?” said Snell.
Baja Alta is a café and retail space focused on California, the American southwest and Mexico. One-third of everything Snell sells are products from Mexico, which face a 25% tariff on certain goods. Mexico is exempt from further tariffs for now as they are covered by the free trade agreement from Trump’s first term, but Snell and her suppliers are still on edge.
“You can sense nervousness,” said Snell. “Let’s just wait and see what happens.”
Snell says her suppliers haven’t increased prices yet, but down the street at another Santa Ana establishment, the owner has had a different experience.
Jeffrey Jensen, owner of Chapter One, says that since January, cases of avocados and limes have been a lot more expensive.
“Already up 20%, how much more is it going to go up next week,” said Jensen. “We’re trying to keep our cost under control.”
Customers like Kim Allen, who eats at Chapter One about once a week, are also worried about how much more costly dining out will be.
“A lot of little people can’t do anything about it, which is most of us now. We end up buying stuff because we are consumers, enough to go in debt for things too,” said Allen.
Neither of the business owners has increased their menu prices but fear they may have to in the near future.
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