How does ultralight backpack brand react to new tariffs in the United States

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Since President Donald Trump announced his largest trading partner to the United States (87 countries, including every member of the EU– Companies across industries compete to figure out what new costs mean for the future of their businesses. While the government touted tariffs as a way to restore domestic manufacturing and reduce trade imbalances, Some businesses postpone new product reservationsand others warn customers about to rise. But for some manufacturers of the ultralight gear industry in backpacking, the industry is dominated by small brands that usually calculate their sales in hundreds or lows, and this problem is one of the survival.

“We have to raise prices to keep opening, but as everything becomes more expensive, what happens when people can’t afford it – not just shopping, but shopping?” Julianne Mahoney said Ultralight packaging and gear manufacturer wild brushes. “Most equipment companies use materials that are not produced anywhere in the United States, and we don’t have factories or infrastructure to do that. I just wish I could stick with it and keep doing what I love.”

Backpacker Talked with seven Ultralight and Cottage outdoor brands about how they prepare for new tariffs on imported goods. The companies we talk to range from single-person actions that Mahoney is operated entirely by Mahoney to some of the well-known people in the field. Although most people are confident in their survival, many say they need to pass on price increases to consumers if tariffs remain the same. A few expect to make difficult choices, such as staying in touch with trusted suppliers or eliminating products from their lines. Everyone talked about the difficulties and uncertainties of doing business now as they tried to make the biggest shock to the global market since the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic.

Even small backpack brands can source products and components from around the world due to the tangled global supply chain of the outdoor industry. Dan Durston, founder and designer behind Duston, Canadian worship and tent makerIt says that while his company bought materials such as Dyneema Fabric and carbon fiber tent poles from the United States, it has a large portion of its manufacturing industry in other countries, including Vietnam, China, Austria, South Korea and Taiwan. With tariffs of up to 40% or 50% in some of these countries, he expects many companies, including him, to charge more products from U.S. customers.

“The outdoor industry is already struggling, and many companies can only make zero to ten profits, so if companies have to pay a new tax of 10% to 70%, then most companies can’t absorb that tax and prices will have to go up,” Durston said. Although the company is committed to keeping its prices low, there is no choice but to transfer higher costs from taxes to consumers, he said.

Some ultralight brands hope they can avoid facing new tariffs and avoid raising prices. Jonathan Schmid Gossamer GearOver the past few years, his company has prepared for economic instability by ordering large quantities of products and limiting its discounts.

“If anything, it’s unsustainable for the global economy,” Schmid said, whose company makes tents and packaging in Vietnam and makes other equipment in the United States, Taiwan, China and South Korea. “We are lucky to be a slim, mostly direct-to-consumer brand, so we want to get through the storm and absorb any growth without passing it on to customers, but we are worried about what the bigger brands will do in the exploration that will involve new premium materials and processes for us all.”

No brand Backpacker Contact said they have plans to move their manufacturing to the United States in response to tariffs. Lloyd Vogel, CEO of Cabin Backpack Retailer Garage planting gearsMost hut gear companies that make their products abroad can’t afford the cost of building in a new country, said.

“Small brands just don’t have the ability to pick up the luxury of production and movement,” he said. “It’s not a quick process at all. Bringing new products to market in a new factory requires sampling, a lot of time and a loss of sales that small brands don’t have.” Instead, Vogel said, he hopes that most ultra-light and bungalow brands will continue to outsource production and expand the increase in business costs between themselves, suppliers and consumers.

Brands made in the United States are also facing a headwind

Even brands that make equipment completely in the U.S. hope this week’s tariff increase is to challenge their business. Clothing brand put up Its merino layers and accessories are produced in Salt Lake City’s own facilities, but fabrics from several countries, including Vietnam, which currently faces a tariff rate of 46%. President Matt Disney said that although Wuru is willing to invest thousands of yards of fabric at a time with a domestic, booked supplier and minimum source of orders, he asked him to invest thousands of yards of fabric at a time, making it the starter of his small company.

“If we can put it on a truck in North Carolina and get it on us, that’s what we’re going to do because it’s easy,” he said. Disney said the company is looking to buy more wool from Australia, which is currently under lower tariffs in the U.S., hoping to keep the price of its products stable.

Even companies buying investments in the United States feel the recent increase in the downstream effects of tariffs, as the cost of suppliers purchasing their own components from abroad. In the past month alone, Mahoney sewed one of the Wild Brush’s vibrant hip packaging in Colorado, the price of the material has risen from about $16 to $29.

“I am now working to calculate the new production costs on all equipment and decide to redesign lower costs, raise prices or stop producing the equipment,” she said.

No matter how hard they search or how much they are willing to pay, some small backpack brands rely on materials that simply cannot provide American suppliers. Rudy Glocker, founder of outdoor clothing manufacturer in New Hampshire germinationAlthough his company bought most of the supplies from U.S. companies, it has not purchased specialized components made in the United States, such as waterproof fabrics or zippers, which are produced in small quantities and are mainly used in Berry-style products used in the U.S. military. (The Berry Amendment requires that most defense-related products are produced in the United States from almost entirely made U.S. components, which is why military-specification packaging is usually several times more costly than its consumers’ equivalent.) It and its suppliers rely on machines that depend on China and Japan.

When asked to estimate that Burgeon would be able to avoid the opportunity to raise prices if the tariffs were at current levels, Glocker said “zero”.

“If the price of these zippers goes up, the price of my waterproof jackets has to go up,” he said. “I can’t afford that. I need to be able to pay my staff and do what we do…I don’t have to do that if my suppliers don’t raise the price, but I don’t think that is the world we live in.”

For now, small backpack brands are waiting to see exactly how the new tariffs this week work and what it means for their industry in the long run.

“It’s so hard and uncertain to run a small business. We all lack the financial resources of such big brands, and it’s easy for us to see many brands going out of business soon,” said Bill Amos, founder of Apparel Maker. Northwest mountain. “I can’t imagine how it would feel to have materials or finished products on the water on the huge tariff bill that has to be paid on the boat.”