Small businesses in Pittsburgh begin to see worrying signs as U.S. escalates its trade war
Small businesses are expressing their concerns about a trade war between the U.S. and other nations.
"The certainty is that I have people to feed, I have staff that have been with me loyally for years, I have huge rent to pay on Walnut Street, all of those things keep me up at night," Roberta Weissburg said.
For 35 years, Weissburg Leathers has been bringing something unique to the Shadyside community: custom leather pieces designed by the owner and made inside the store.
"That's one of the things that's keeping us going because there's so much competition in basic retail," she said.
At Weissburg's boutique, you can find jewelry and ready-to-wear pieces, but their custom design work is what keeps the business stable.
However, Weissburg wonders just how long that will last as the trade war between the United States and other nations threatens her bottom line.
"How do I know how much leather is going to cost? Is my labor price going to go up? How about the price, how about the lining? The buttons, all of those things are working together to keep us very unsettled, and that's the problem, we're not going anywhere, but we're worried.
Just this morning, she got a call from one of the vendors who informed her about a 35% increase due to the tariffs.
Uncertainty looms among the small business owners on Walnut Street.
"I just want to give you a quick example a few other businesses in the area carry this brand Hammitt." Weissburg continued. "A small business owner like me, who has invested years in this brand, is now being affected because I can't promise that this new little bag is not going to go through the roof in 6 months."
