New tariffs create 'unfair policy' that threatens fair trade businesses

 

In more than 40 years of connecting people in the U.S. with people in Nepal through fair trade, Ganesh Himal Trading Co. has faced struggles from earthquakes, economic downturns and revolutions.

Now new tariffs are creating "unfair policy that threatens their business, producers, staff, store buyers and retail customers," said Denise Attwood, co-founder of Ganesh Himal. "Enough is enough. The new tariffs are causing damage, not just to American businesses but also to marginalized producers around the world."

Similarly, Jillian Joseph, owner of Kizuri, said tariffs are an additional 10 percent on products from Nepal, but an additional 50 percent for certain metals and art materials for products from India, totaling 65 percent on goods when they arrive.

"We are trying to eat as much of that amount before customs, but there are few middlemen in fair trade," she said. "That's good because it means there are fewer people with costs in the middle, but now it means there are fewer to help absorb the cost of tariffs."

For example, Ganesh Himal buys directly from the artisans and sells directly to Kizuri and other retailers.

"It means fair trade is easier to manage and can have a more direct impact on the artisans," Jillian continued. "Artisans want us to continue our purchases at the current levels, and we want to continue our commitment to them. Our customers will continue to help us help the artisans."

A Supreme Court decision in November will have an impact on whether the tariffs will hold, she pointed out.

"Meanwhile, we live with uncertainty," she said. "It's destabilizing. There is so much for business owners to think about as we work in international trade. Changes keep dangling over our heads. Is this going to change or not change?"

Canada and Mexico were the first countries affected. The source for the Kenyan tea Kizuri sells is through Canadian suppliers, as is clothing from Palestine and Jordan. That adds to the tariff charged.

Many of Kizuri's products are from Mexico.

"We import much of our clothing, jewelry, accessories and textiles from India. Brazil is another source of products," Jillian explained. "Most of the items we sell will have some impact from tariffs. I will absorb some, as will importers. We already have many of our goods for the holidays, but there will be some tariffs across the board, so while most items have seen price increases, some have stayed the same."

Jillian pointed out that producers are worried that demand will not be the same if retailers have to raise prices.

"We want to keep products as accessible as possible so we can continue to support producers and isolate them from the effects of tariffs," Jillian said.

Denise expanded on how Ganesh Himal Trading Co., a wholesaler, has been affected.

A shipment that just arrived Sept. 16 in the U.S. was not only tagged for an "intensive exam at the customs facility" for which it was charged nearly $6,000, but the duty on it was nearly $10,500, compared with a duty of $2,542 for a similar shipment in Sept. 2024.

"Our broker's fees stayed the same, but the total bill went from $4,787 last September to $16,925, an increase of $12,138," she reported. "This increase is for one of six shipments in the year, conservatively at $10,000 per shipment, it means added taxes of $60,000 for the year that we have to pay."

Denise would rather have that amount be invested in a good job for someone, in more products or services for producers to raise their incomes or in positive progress for climate change, not to pay for tax cuts for billionaires.

It's a miracle that the shipment even arrived, she said.

The September shipment is the largest, most vital one each year, because it's for holiday sales. It was supposed to leave Nepal by air on Sept 8, but Nepal's Gen Z rose up in protest on that day.

Thousands demanded accountability from a government that has demonstrated major corruption, she said.

"What did those Gen Z kids want? A chance, an opportunity and a future. They no longer wanted their only 'opportunities' to be to go to work in The United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Malaysia," Denise explained. "They no longer wanted to leave by the thousands every day, searching for meaningful work. They wanted a government who would work for them to help create a better Nepal."

The Gen Z protestors brought down the government in three days. By Sept. 11, the Prime Minister stepped down, and Parliament was dissolved. By Sept. 12 with the influence of more than 10,000 protesters, who organized on social media, Sushila Karki, the former head of the Nepali Supreme Court, was appointed as the first woman interim Prime Minister responsible for overseeing a transitional government.

She "symbolized integrity and resistance against corruption," according to Yog Raj Lamichhane, an assistant professor in business school at Nepal's Pokhara University.

With the protests came a lockdown and curfew. The airport, business and government offices closed. The Ganesh Himal shipment was not able to leave on time, but by Saturday, Sept. 12, the curfew had lifted. Nepal Customs and the airport opened.

"Our crew on the ground sent our shipment out that day," Denise said. "It was a miracle and shows not only their dedication to Ganesh Himal and the producers we work with, knowing how important it was for them to have the accounting and payment done before their holiday of Dashain."

Then came the duty and tariff sticker shock.

"We have been paying higher duty since this administration's tariffs of March 2025," she said.

"We could learn a lesson from Nepal's youth and say it's time to stop the corruption and give people a fair shot," Denise said, sharing "the story of heroics in Nepal as juxtaposed against a ridiculous U.S. tariff policy.

"It's time to challenge this arbitrary man-made obstacle, so we can move together toward a brighter future," she asserted.

Just as people came together after a devastating earthquake in Nepal, she invites people to unite to confront the man-made system of corruption and inequality the tariffs uphold.

"The fair-trade movement is about creating a just economy where everyone prospers," she said. "We have worked hard to get where we are. I remember when there wasn't a fair-trade movement. Now look at the force we have become."

Knowing the impacts of the tariffs on the businesses, customers and producers Ganesh Himal works with and the countries where they work, Denise urges people to share these stories with their friends and congresspeople to push for a better path.

"We're calling for awareness and change not for one business or one industry but to build a system that uplifts," she said, asking those who believe in economic justice to share the story, write their representatives and demand fairness in trade policy.

"Let's not stay silent," she asserted.

For information, call 499-3320 or 464-7677, or visit kizuri.com or ganeshhimaltrading.com