UNDERSTANDING TARIFFS
In our industry, it’s feeling a bit like COVID all over again — there’s plenty of uncertainty, BUT, many ways around the current tariff conversation. With correct planning, forecasting, and triple checking we are doing our best to stay ahead of unexpected surprises. Here is information about how the interior design industry is vulnerable as well as how we are planning ahead to avoid issues with the precarious situation.
1 UNPREDICTABLE SPIKES IN PRICES
The US is largely adding tariffs to Electric Vehicles, steel, aluminum, solar, lumber, etc. This could sound like it leaves the interior design industry unaffected, however many building components for furnishings, fixtures, etc are sourced from China - even if the product is assembled/built in the US or other countries. This could cause varying price increases, discontinued lines, and narrowed down selections.
2 LONG LEAD TIMES
Rather than an ‘in stock now’ or ‘8-10 week lead time’, we can expect to see up to 20 week lead times returning. This is largely due to the restructuring of shipping routes as retailers are navigating how to deliver products for the best possible end consumer cost.
3 PRO'S AND CON'S FOR LOCAL MANUFACTURING
Due to unexpected price increases and hits to building budgets, its not surprising to find clients seeking less expensive items online, which massively hurts our local vendors and manufacturers.
In another perspective, these less expensive items online could have extremely long lead times or go out of stock at any moment due to supply chain issues. This makes local manufacturing much more reliable and would be an obvious aid to our local economy.
4 HOW ONE WEST STUDIO IS PREPARING FOR TARIFFS
Whether or not we are in early design stages, quoting stages, or purchasing stages with our current projects, One West Studio is proactively working to stay ahead of unforeseen tariff issues by the following: Communicating with all of our vendors about their lead times and forecasts, Building out longer projected forecasts for each project to factor in longer product lead times, Educating our clients on what to expect during this unpredictable time, Communicating with our clients about where all their items are in the shipping/manufacturing process.
In essence, design and building will still thrive but a bit more intention needs to be brought to whom you shop with. We believe that advanced planning will be one of the biggest facilitators to the unpredictabilities at hand.