Happy Sunday,
We could talk more about socks, or factories, or even the Olympics, but we are forced back into our sock-o-nomics series after another week of tariff whiplash.
Friday started with great news. The Supreme Court struck down the administration’s use of IEEPA to impose certain tariffs. Clarity? Maybe. But in reality, it created more questions.
Refunds for businesses that paid those elevated duties? Unknown.
What happens to shipments already in transit? Unclear.
How does customs reconcile entries filed under different rates? TBD.
Most leaders would take this new info, go back and strategize what the next steps could be, and eventually come back with a response or a new (thought-out) plan. But, within a few hours, a new 10% global tariff was threatened. THEN… Less than 24 hours later, that number reportedly moved to 15%. No framework, no published structure, and no real explanation of how or when it would be implemented.
As we write this, there is no one on the planet who could clearly explain what the actual tariff structure is in the US. That’s a crazy statement, NOT a political statement. This is our operating reality.
From a small business perspective, this is not normal. It’s not stable. And it’s not easy to plan around; it’s actually quite crippling. Duty rates have changed more than ten times in the past ten months. When you make physical products, when you order raw materials, schedule factory time, book freight, and price inventory months in advance, you’re building a model based on assumptions. If one of the biggest cost inputs in that model can swing repeatedly, with little notice, it doesn’t just squeeze margins. It distorts decision-making.
Do you raise prices preemptively?
Do you absorb the hit and hope it reverses?
Do you delay production and risk going out of stock?
Do you ship now or wait?
Mind you, the US dollar is also fluctuating due to this, which adds another complexity. There’s no clear answer when the rules keep shifting. Large multinational corporations can spread that risk. They have balance sheets, lobbying teams, legal departments, and pricing leverage.
We have spreadsheets.
We’re constantly recalculating landed cost scenarios, trying to understand what our true exposure is, and asking: What are the actual rules today? Right now, even that feels fluid. This kind of volatility doesn’t just impact importers. It ripples through factories, freight partners, wholesalers, retailers, and ultimately customers. Everyone in the chain is trying to interpret signals that change faster than production cycles.
We really don’t have any answers yet. We’re still waiting for some clarity, like everyone else. In the meantime, we’re watching closely, adjusting if we can, and hoping for some form of stability.
As always, thank you for reading! Enjoy the news below, and we wish you a great week!
Hope you enjoy today’s Clean Up. We would love to hear from you. Comment here on Substack, hit us on social, or email us at info@arvingoods.com. Have a great week. Cheers,
Who is Alysa Liu? Meet Team USA’s alt-girl athlete who became 1st U.S. woman to win Olympic figure skating gold in 24 years. - Yahoo
Alysa Liu is one of a kind. The 20-year-old figure skater from Clovis, Calif., emerged as one of Team USA’s standout performers — and made history at this year’s Winter Olympics, where she won two gold medals.
It seems Liu has always been in a league of her own. At just 13 years old, she became the youngest-ever national champion — breaking Tara Lipinski’s record — and the first U.S. woman to land three triple axels during a performance. She made history again the following year as the first to land a quadruple jump in competition.
Liu has represented her country several times before the 2026 Winter Olympics: She won bronze at the 2022 World Championships and made the Olympic team in 2022, placing sixth in Beijing before retiring at 16. Now, four years later, Liu is out of retirement and skating entirely on her own terms.
Best Olympic photos from Day 14 - Reuters
Reuters is running a daily page of all the best photos from the Olympics in Milan. We are big photo fans, and the Olympics are an obvious moment, but some of the shots captured are truly amazing! 📷🥇
7 key things to know about Trump’s tariffs after the Supreme Court decision - NPR
The Supreme Court ruled Friday that President Trump overstepped his authority when he ordered tariffs on imports from nearly every country in the world, using a 1970s "emergency" statute. Here are 7 things to know about what's at stake.
Tariffs are raising a lot of money — but not as much as Trump claims
The federal government has been collecting about $30 billion in tariffs every month — or about four times as much as it took in before Trump returned to the White House.
Trump has raised tariff rates to their highest level in nearly a century, but import taxes are still a small share of overall government revenue — just over 5% in January.🚢📦
Wav Session 33 : Morning Hiphop & Jazz Rap Mix [ 20 Tracks ] - YouTube
DJ GUN GUN with an easy Sunday set. Enjoy 🔊🎧
'The Clean Up' is a weekly newsletter that mixes in some Arvin Goods news, products, as well as stories we saw during the week that are worth a share. From books to podcasts, sustainability to business news, we try to keep it interesting, and fun. If you are not a subscriber, sign up and join everyone who receives The Clean Up directly in their inbox every Sunday.
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