‘How long is this going to last?' Small business owners grapple with raising prices amid Trump tariffs
The past couple of months have been filled with uncertainty for Toronto bar owner Cesar Mesen.
Ever since U.S. President Donald Trump launched his tariff attack on Canada — and the world — Mesen says the cost of running The Pint Public House has soared.
Food prices are up, along with everything from the price of napkins and takeout containers to aluminum beer cans — all hurting Mesen's bottom line.
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While he's been able to talk with suppliers about finding Canadian- or non-U.S.-sourced goods to minimize costs, Mesen warns the bar may eventually need to raise prices customers see on the menu if tariffs don't go away soon.
'Right now what worries us the most,' Mesen says, 'is how long is this going to last and what is going to be the end result.'
Mesen is not the only Canadian small business owner grappling with Trump's tariffs, even as the president's daily trade proclamations against friend and foe have slowed in recent weeks.
According to data from an April survey of 130 small businesses across Canada conducted by digital financing company Merchant Growth, nearly 40 per cent of businesses in Canada have raised prices due to tariffs.
On the bright side, eight in ten of these businesses report passing on only a quarter or less of the added expenses to customers.
Merchant Growth's data is in line with the findings of other small business groups.
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Canadian Federation of Independent Business surveys of 1,065 and 417 small businesses from March and April found that owners expected to hike customer prices by an average of 3.7 and 3.5 per cent respectively.
'We looked at all industries, from steel manufacturing to transportation and even to discretionary goods and retail,' Joe Conte, chief growth officer at Merchant Growth, said. 'They were seeing a lot of direct impacts.'
Thes impacts include the cost of manufacturing goods, particularly those containing aluminum or steel — materials that were slapped with a 25 per cent tariff by Trump back in March.
Businesses have also had to deal with the indirect impact of slower supply chains, according to Conte.
Together, these impacts present small businesses with the difficult task of bringing in revenue while not turning off customers with jacked prices.
'There is a bit of delicate balance for small businesses,' says Conte, 'trying to protect their existing customer base while still staying profitable.'
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Besides raising consumer prices, Conte said business owners have tried to mitigate the impact of the tariffs by looking for alternative suppliers — and even new export markets.
While Conte acknowledged there has not been recent tariff announcements targeting Canada, he says there is still a lot of uncertainty.
'I'd love to be able to say that we have plateaued,' he says, 'but what we do know is that we have no line of sight as to the level of uncertainty around the tariffs.'
Even amid the uncertainty, Mesen said customers at his bar should expect to see the same prices on the menu for the 'foreseeable future,' but that things may change depending on any tariff announcements or if the Canadian economy worsens.
'Passing the cost on to the guests has to be the last choice.'
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