US President Donald J. Trump’s tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico will surely have an effect on the fashion industry, but it won’t be one of the most severely affected.
On the list of categories, fashion categories are at or close to the bottom. At US $ 600 million, the hide and skins category was noteworthy. Imports of footwear came in at US $ 1.3 billion, just over it. With an import value of US $ 6.9 billion, textiles and apparel were somewhat more valuable than toys and sporting goods (US $ 1.9 billion).
Higher product prices are one way that tariffs affect fashion sales, as businesses and retailers pass on a portion of the charges to customers. Additionally, although the fashion categories were much lower on the list, the higher costs of food—the United States imports 63 per cent of its vegetables and 47 per cent of its fruit and nuts from Mexico—and other necessities have an impact on how much money is left over for discretionary purchases like clothing and footwear.
Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America (FDRA) president and CEO Matt Priest said in a statement that the FDRA industry sales survey showed that footwear sales for the week ending 22nd February fell 26.2 per cent from the same retail week in 2024. The data points are based on a survey of more than 3,000 stores. All areas of the nation saw a drop in sales. This steep drop isn’t simply a normal business cycle hiccup; it’s a blatant sign of a change in consumer sentiment and behaviour linked to the continuously rising inflation and worries that new tariffs will drive up prices even more, he added.
The US president has cited the European Union, China, Brazil, India, Mexico and Canada, as well as South Korea for reciprocal tariffs.
