As President Donald Trump’s tariffs see the cost of goods go up, Virginia businesses are facing the crunch. That’s according to a new survey by a Richmond organization that aims to help local businesses.
“This is a really hard time to be a business owner,” InUnison Vice President Diana McMahon told a crowd Thursday morning. Her group aims to support independent businesses in the Richmond area. She was explaining the results of a survey of 180 area businesses, conducted in February and March.
“There’s a lot of positive indicators for meaningful growth in the highlights here but also some fault lines we need to watch closely,” McMahon said.
The surveyed companies said hiring is down, but applicant quality has increased. Capital access has decreased, but local confidence in the economy is higher than what we’re seeing nationally. But businesses are already dipping in profitability and margins are tightening.
“We know that local businesses are the first to feel that pinch," McMahon warned. "So, access to capital, monitoring cashflow is going to become increasingly important for our businesses.”
Thursday’s talk included a dive into how tariffs are starting to impact businesses. Among those who said they were waiting for the sting is Lisa McSherry. She’s owned the formal dress store Lex’s of Carytown for nearly 30 years. Her designers are in the states, but everything is manufactured in China. And while warehouses were stocked ahead of prom season, she fears they’ll be empty before long, and when she orders new products from China…
“That’s when the true tariffs are going to start affecting us cause everything is going to essentially be a special order,” McSherry said.
But McSherry is staying calm; she thinks China will feel the burn first.
“Yea know, in a perfect world I would love for them to say ‘okay, you stick to a 10% tariff, I stick to a 10% tariff, and prices could essentially come down if that’s the case," McSherry said. "They could… that’s in a perfect world."
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.
