The fashion industry’s had a bit of a breather from the political news cycle lately as the Trump administration was consumed with damage control over inadvertently inviting a journalist into a group chat to discuss sensitive war plans.
This week, break’s over. President Donald Trump is expected to announce long-promised “reciprocal” tariffs on countries where the US regularly runs up trade deficits. Among them are Vietnam, the No. 2 clothing and footwear exporter to the US after China, and the European Union, which sends over containers full of luxury handbags, shoes and ready to wear.
Trump’s approach to trade has made the usual tariff playbook – move production out of affected countries, raise prices in stores – obsolete. After all, Vietnam was supposed to be the America-friendly alternative to China’s rising costs and escalating tensions with the US. And it’s hard to pass along costs to consumers when you don’t know what those costs will be from week to week.
This ambiguity can be seen in brands’ responses to tariffs: A few, including Hermès and Steve Madden, have said they’ll raise prices, while American Eagle and others say they won’t. On Thursday, H&M chief executive Daniel Ervér said the fast fashion retailer would move production to avoid tariffs, but didn’t offer specifics.
For more on how the industry is responding, as well as strategies for how businesses can cope, keep an eye out on Monday for BoF’s latest Memo on all things tariffs, available to Executive subscribers.
TikTok’s Clock Never Stops
As if the tariffs weren’t enough, TikTok’s reprieve from a US ban is set to expire on Saturday, April 5. To recap: Congress passed a law last year forcing TikTok’s Chinese owners to sell the video platform or face a ban. TikTok was briefly unavailable in app stores for one memorable weekend in January, but Trump extended the deadline for a sale to April 5.
The smart money is betting TikTok will be sold, perhaps to Larry Ellison’s Oracle. (Polymarket, a site that accepts wagers on news events, gives a 77 percent chance TikTok will be available on app stores on May 1, implying either a sale or further delays.) What’s missing is a nod from China’s government, which would need to approve a deal. On Thursday, Trump sweetened the pot, saying he’d potentially lower tariffs and/or extend the deadline to move a sale along.
Unlike with tariffs, the playbook for brands and influencers is pretty clear: Assume TikTok isn’t going anywhere, but make sure to tend to your followings on Instagram and YouTube, just in case.
The Week Ahead wants to hear from you! Send tips, suggestions, complaints and compliments to brian.baskin@businessoffashion.com.
