FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 14, 2025
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As the Trump administration continues to implement across the board tariffs and tease even more tariffs, Georgia businesses are grappling with rising costs, disrupted operations, and growing economic uncertainty. Across sectors—from manufacturing to craft brewing—employers are speaking out about the mounting financial pressure and the long-term risks to jobs and investment.
Here’s what Georgians are reading about the impact of tariffs on local businesses:
Capitol Beat, Trump Tariffs Have Georgia Businesses Nervous
Tom Smith, an economics professor at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School, said tariffs essentially are a tax.
“These tariffs are not paid by other countries,” he said. “They are paid by our businesses and our consumers. … Georgia companies will have to pay the tax, and they will likely have to pass some of that on to consumers.”
AJC, Patricia Murphy: Chinese tariffs no joke for this Atlanta toy store
Georgia businesses, from craft beer makers to specialty manufacturers, are sounding the alarm that their operations could be in trouble.
“I can’t sleep at night. I don’t know what is going to happen tomorrow. I’m even afraid of turning on the news,” said Felipe Arroyave in Atlanta, who founded Spectrum International in 2017 to make custom contact lenses. “The pause doesn’t mean anything to us. It’s just more uncertainty in business.”
Arroyave was named the U.S. Small Business Administration exporter of the year in 2024. But now he says he doesn’t even know how much to charge for his contact lenses; he has no idea which tariffs will affect him or how, since he has to import all of these component parts.
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Tariffs Cost US is a new campaign dedicated to providing the public with reliable, comprehensive information about global trade and tariffs, and their impact on both businesses and consumers.
