How Trump’s Covid-Era Tariff Policy Could Help Small Businesses Like Mine Reshore
I am the president of The Bristol Group, a family-owned American home textiles company. We are actively reshoring production from China to the American heartland, including in “opportunity zones” created by President Donald Trump’s 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. These opportunity zones were created to spur economic development and job creation in economically distressed communities. We are investing in state-of-the-art equipment, and by next year we aim to employ more than 100 Americans making products that were previously imported from China. This should be a good news story of revival in U.S. manufacturing. Instead, it’s teetering on the brink of disaster — not because our business model is flawed, but because of import tariffs hitting us in the transition period like a sledgehammer.
When we committed to reshore, we knew it would not be easy. Building domestic supply chains takes time. What we did not anticipate was the whiplash of trade policy changes slamming us with enormous costs before our first U.S. factory is even operational. Imports in our category already face tariffs as high as 20 percent, but until Monday we faced an additional 145 percent duty on goods from China. That means an imported shipment valued at $100,000 incurs an additional $145,000 tax at the border. For a small manufacturer like us, that kind of sudden cost spike is ruinous.
Thanks to the successful efforts of President Trump and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, the tariffs were ratcheted down from 145 percent to 30 percent for 90 days. These 90 days are critical. They provide us with a window during which the administration can make the changes necessary to allow reshoring companies to move crucial machinery and raw materials back to the United States, giving a bridge to those companies so that they can survive long enough to return manufacturing to the U.S.
Small businesses reliant on imports often lack the financial capacity to absorb steep tariffs on the goods they need to survive. For companies in the process of reshoring production to America, these tariffs become an overwhelming burden.
Tragically, this scenario is playing out for many small manufacturers and import-reliant businesses trying to do the right thing.
My business is like many others and is pouring money into building American production, yet we’re being strangled by tariffs originally meant to punish China. It is a bitter irony: the very policy designed to encourage U.S. manufacturing is, in the short run, undermining a company that is actually bringing manufacturing back to the U.S.
Temporary Tariff Deferral
Is there a solution? Absolutely. We need a temporary tariff deferral and offset program for companies like mine that are actively reshoring production to the United States. Think of it as a trade war equivalent of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) that saved so many businesses during the Covid pandemic. In our case, the relief would not even require government cash outlay. It simply means postponing or reimbursing the tariffs we would otherwise pay, on the condition that we reinvest those savings in U.S. manufacturing capacity.
Here’s how it could work: If a company is moving production from China (or another country) to the U.S., the federal government would allow a deferral of import tariffs for 12–18 months. The company would document its domestic investment plans: building a facility, purchasing U.S. machinery, and hiring workers. As the company meets those milestones, the deferred tariffs could be forgiven entirely. Instead of sending millions to the Treasury now, we would be required to plow those millions into American factories and American jobs. It’s a fair trade-off that achieves the policy goal far more effectively than a blanket tariff that simply drains resources before reshoring is complete.
This idea isn’t theoretical. In 2020, the Trump administration authorized a 90-day deferral of tariff payments for businesses hurt by Covid disruptions. That emergency action saved companies and jobs, without a significant downside. What I’m proposing is a targeted measure: a deferral (and potential cancellation) of tariffs for companies demonstrably investing in domestic production. Call it the “Production Protection Program.” The goal is to protect the production (and jobs) we are trying to build in America by giving us a temporary breather on punitive import costs. Unlike broad tariff exclusions, this would be earned relief — essentially a performance-based incentive to make things in America. If a company fails to follow through on its U.S. investment commitments, it would lose the deferral and owe the tariffs. But if it succeeds, we all win: the company grows, American workers benefit, and future imports (and tariffs) decrease as production shifts home.
Acting Swiftly
Crucially, this program can be enacted via executive action — and it should be done immediately. Time is of the essence. Every day that passes with tariffs draining small manufacturers’ coffers is a day closer to layoffs or bankruptcy. Implementing a reshoring tariff deferral program would be a bold, straightforward move to support American manufacturing.
Opponents might argue that any tariff relief undermines our trade leverage or lets importers off the hook. But this program is not about giving up on fair trade goals; it’s about aligning our tools with our ultimate objective: rebuilding American industry. We’re doing exactly that — so why should we be bludgeoned as a result? Unlike multinationals, we don’t have the luxury of shifting production to Vietnam, India, or Mexico on a whim, nor do we have billions in the bank to ride out losses. We also don’t have armies of lobbyists to secure special deals. We’re not asking for special treatment; we’re asking for consistency and fairness: If an American company is investing to create American jobs, our policies should empower that effort, not sabotage it.
President Trump can show the country that “America First” is more than a slogan by ensuring that the first to reshore production don’t become collateral damage. Our U.S. factory is close to roaring to life at full capacity. Give us — and others like us — the temporary relief we need to get there. In return, we will build, hire, and produce like never before, right here on American soil.
Joseph Weintraub is the president of The Bristol Group, a family-owned American home textiles company.
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