At Cambridge toy store, Markey blasts Trump for ‘toying with our economy' with tariffs.
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Senator Ed Markey celebrates Henry Bear's Park's newest storefront after discussing the impacts of tariffs on small businesses May 16.
Maren Halpin
Last month, the Trump administration
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'It requires some very real, hard decisions to be made,' he said. 'Do we pass the costs onto our customers? If we do, how will that impact access to learning resources for families?'
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Under even the 30 percent tariff, many classic toys could see substantial price increases, said Meghann Ellis, chief financial officer of North Andover-based toy manufacturer Schylling Inc. While the company designs their products here, they are manufactured in China, much like 80 percent of all toys in the United States, she said.
The tariffs mean that a jack-in-the-box that today costs $25, for example, will jump to $32, while a $35 tea set rises to $45, said Ellis, holding up her company's products that are sold in the Cambridge store.
Last week,
And the economic consequences could go well beyond kids having fewer toys. Half of toy stores in the United States, the majority of which are small businesses, fear they will be forced to close in the coming months,
Schylling has been forced to temporarily pause manufacturing and shipping, reduce staff, and raise prices to remain in business with the flexibility to handle more unexpected changes to international trade, said Ellis. They have 'cautiously restarted' manufacturing, she said, but more questions than answers remain.
Local business owners, including Henry Bear Park owner Kas Sharma and CFO of toy manufacturer Schylling Inc. Meghann Ellis, join Senator Ed Markey to discuss the impact of economic uncertainty on small businesses.
Maren Halpin
'Which items should we make now, and which should we wait to see if the tariffs decrease? What if they increase? Should we ship as much as possible in the next 90 days? What prices should we charge our customers if we don't know how much something will ultimately cost?' Ellis said. 'This uncertainty not only makes it impossible to plan, it's bad for business.'
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Standing amid the store's brightly colored shelves filled with science kits, stuffed animals, and dolls, Markey announced he will be working next week to enact legislation on the Senate floor to exempt all small businesses from Trump's tariffs, he said, 'freeing small business from the cloud of uncertainty hanging over their head.'
'Right now, Trump's tariffs are turning 'Main Street' into 'Pain Street' for small businesses,' said Markey.
Maren Halpin can be reached at
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