Throughout 2025, tariffs have made a large impact on many industries, driving up the cost of materials and creating great uncertainty for what’s to come. From potential 100% tariffs in China to 50% tariffs in India and many other varied tariff rates globally, it has become increasingly unclear how to best plan for the potential enactment and repercussions of these tariffs. That is why the HFPA brought in a panel of industry insiders for our October TexTalk, including Charles Gaenslen, CEO of Loftex Home, Sam Cooper, third-generation owner of Klear Vu Corporation, and Sonja Chapman, Associate Professor of International Trade and Marketing at the Fashion Institute of Technology. Moderated by award-winning journalist Warren Shoulberg, our panelists shared their strategies for navigating these tariffs in 2026.
How do you compare 2025 to previous trading periods? Have the constant changes in policies brought about chaos and confusion for companies? And how are they dealing with it now?
She continued, sharing that the economic disaster that most economists expected has not happened yet, potentially because many companies took proactive steps to scale up their inventories prior to the enactment of certain tariffs. Additionally, it may be because some tariffs were not as high as originally expected or did not materialize as announced. Chapman expects that because these tariffs have been broadly applied globally, prices will increase and companies will have a broader diversification of trading partners, noting, “I don’t think we’re really going to see [the impact] in full strength until quarter one or quarter two of 2026.” She advised
What, if any, changes are you making because of these trade policies?
Panelist Sam Cooper shared that, though as a domestic company, Klear Vu fills, sews, and finishes its home textiles in the U.S., like many other U.S. manufacturers, it relies on a globalized supply chain, particularly for products like upholstery fabric. Each panelist agreed that the biggest challenge they are facing is the uncertainty. ” If you’re sailing down the river and you can see a rock in the distance, you can tack, you can change your sails, or you can change course. But if someone you know rolls a boulder down the hill right in front of you, you’re going to hit it, you’re going to take on water, and it’s going to be an emergency,” Cooper recounted.
At a domestic company like Klear Vu, they have focused on de-risking SKUs and diversifying where they get certain materials to meet the goal of delivering the consistency that their customers and retailers expect. They have done their best to be proactive when possible, but as the environment becomes increasingly more challenging, they must manage their strategy week to week and month to month.
At an international company like Loftex Home, they have faced additional tariffs since 2019. Panelist Charles Gaenslen noted that their proactivity has been their greatest strength, allowing them to keep their reputation for shipping on time, high-quality product at scale. Though they are based in China, one of the biggest targets of these tariffs, they do not seek to change their country of origin or invest in other countries, as their infrastructure and significant investment in both capital equipment and training are not easily moved or replicated elsewhere.
How are retailers dealing with this?
Cooper shared that in order to keep prices from changing drastically at Klear Vu, they try to have very clear and communicative strategies with their retailers. Depending on the product, they are looking at incremental changes, anywhere from a few cents to a couple of dollars a day. That said, depending on the fabric, there is at least a 25% tariff, and when combined with base duty and retaliatory tariffs, there are some fabrics that are getting to be north of 50% in total. They hope that through these increasing tariff changes, they can continue to keep prices incremental as they work with retailers.
Chapman shared that as companies built up their inventories, though they may have avoided costs associated with tariffs, they now have to deal with storage fees, leading to temporary price surges as a result. She also mentioned another costsaving strategy — bonded warehouses. While they are not a viable option for smaller companies, larger companies can open a bonded portion of their warehouses, so long as they have experts who know how to handle the regulation and customs supervision that comes with it. Gaenslen seconded that, though this is not a strategy they have employed at Loftex, bonded warehouses could be another tool to give companies an opportunity to take advantage of lowered tariffs for particular products.
Are the tariffs helping U.S. companies, and are consumers feeling the pressure?
Our panelists agreed that although the intention of these tariffs was to divert business to U.S. companies, the U.S. does not currently have the infrastructure to support the demand. Additionally, at companies like Klear Vu, it’s very challenging to get a wide variety of products for a competitive price in the U.S. Chapman noted that these investments take time and stability, and at this time, there is nothing to compare to the capacity and output of countries like China, India, and Pakistan.
Finally, regarding the consumer perspective, our panelists agreed that it largely depends on who your consumer is. Price increases are affecting consumers differently based on their economic status, with lower and middle-income consumers having weathered a lot of price increases over the past several years and higher-income consumers seeing assets, stocks, and home values rise, allowing them to drive more of the spending. “I’ve heard someone describe it as a K-shaped economy,” Cooper said. Moreover, consumers are aware that these price increases will start to affect them more and more. Gaenslen shared that with higher inflation, likely higher levels of unemployment, and lower overall economic activity, they feel that consumers are getting a little edgy, and that sentiment will continue to get worse.
This TexTalk is brought exclusively to HFPA members as part of our educational series. We hope you’ll join us for the next TexTalk, scheduled for Thursday, December 4, “From Bedding to Bots – What A.I. Means for Home: A beginner-friendly session for the home fashions industry on putting A.I. to work.”
