When ‘Made in America’ Isn’t an Option, Small Business Owners Facing Tariffs Have Nowhere to Go

When Matt Raboin founded his hard cider company in Wisconsin eight years ago, he wanted to buy American.

But he soon found out that his needs as a small, upstart cidery couldn’t be met by any existing American bottle makers because his orders were too small. Forced to look overseas, Raboin, like many American small business owners and consumers, found the best bang for his buck in China.

Now, his vulnerable business model has been disrupted nearly overnight by President Donald Trump’s trade war with China, which escalated at a dizzying rate, giving business owners little time to adapt.