Facing tariffs, should shoppers seek ‘Made in USA’ goods?

By Anna Helhoski NerdWallet Shoppers who are concerned about tariffs driving up the costs of their favorite products might think that Made in USA goods could offer financial relief But finding domestically manufactured budget-friendly items may take effort Americans like the idea of buying more American-made products A November poll by Morning Consult conducted for the Alliance for American Manufacturing revealed that of Americans disclosed they made an effort to buy U S -made goods over the past year And announced they d buy more if retailers made those products easier to find Made in USA won t invariably mean tariff-free Buying American products doesn t mean avoiding tariffs or the global supply chain Even the the greater part well-known U S companies depend on imported components to make finished goods Take Crayola for example It s headquartered in Pennsylvania and has manufacturing facilities in the U S but it also produces specific of its products in Mexico Several other iconic American brands base at least specific if not all of their manufacturing outside the U S where labor and other production costs are lower That includes Levi s jeans L L Bean apparel Converse s Chuck Taylor All Star sneakers Ray-Ban sunglasses Major League baseballs American Girl dolls Fender guitars and essentially everything Nike Even distinctly American auto companies like Ford General Motors and Stellantis assemble cars domestically but need to source parts from elsewhere Chosen parts go into assembling a car In the process of sourcing producing and shipping numerous components will be subject to tariffs each time they cross borders In essence any U S -made goods that require imports somewhere in the production process will face higher production costs while tariffs are in place And when import prices go up the final products made in the U S could become more pricey for consumers Something else to consider Even if Made in USA products are sourced and produced domestically it doesn t mean those goods will be cheaper than foreign or import-dependent U S goods that come with tariffs The cost of labor materials and regulatory compliance can make U S manufacturing expensive Shoppers need time to find and compare their options What happened when I went looking for a pan Finding Made in USA products that are fully produced in America as in sourced and manufactured here can be a needle-in-a-haystack pursuit But it truly depends on what you re looking for In recent months I went looking for a cast-iron pan It s the one kitchen item that I grew up with but don t at present own And because it somehow feels American in my mind I went hunting for an American-made cast-iron pan Turns out in this incident it wasn t too hard But costs varied pretty widely Related Articles Will your credit card work abroad Edmunds How to get the best auto deals this Memorial Day weekend Options to reduce financial stress during uncertain times Is the Trump administration s plan to tax all Chinese-built ships a good idea US spring homebuying season has its weakest start in five years I started with a well-known U S brand All-Clad a cookware company that s headquartered in western Pennsylvania and bases its manufacturing there as well Its boundless stainless steel cookware is made entirely in the U S But when I looked at the product specifications on its -inch enameled cast-iron skillet with a stainless steel lid it says it is made in Vietnam Not a deal breaker for me personally but for the purposes of this article it s not a winner For the record the price tag was on sale from Another Pennsylvania-based cookware company Lancaster Cast Iron produces every one of its products in-state including its No skillet a nearly -inch pan that runs for Then there was Field Company a small cast-iron skillet company based in New York City Its No pan at almost inches and advertised as a smoother lighter cast-iron skillet came in at while the matching cast-iron lid was A pan-and-lid set was All of Field s sourcing is done in the U S and its production is in Indiana Illinois and Wisconsin Certainly I looked for a budget cast-iron-specific kitchenware company and located Lodge Cast Iron a -year old company based in Tennessee It prides itself on producing of its products in the U S various are produced overseas like its enamel-coated cast-iron But its classic seasoned -inch cast-iron skillet is made in the U S Last I checked it was on sale for A cast-iron lid cost around Given my limited kitchen prowess I went with Lodge the the majority affordable option What it takes to get the Made in USA label To promote products as Made in USA the Federal Pact Commission FTC says the products must meet its standards It s been that way for decades but it wasn t until that the FTC provided specific guidance to companies on using the Made in USA label In order to advertise that a product is made manufactured built produced created or crafted in the U S the majority of that company s products must certainly be all or virtually all made in the U S All-Clad and Lodge Cast Iron can broadly promote themselves as Made in USA because the overwhelming majority of their products are But in advertising specific products companies can t claim the products are made in the U S when they re not Ultimately choosing to purchase American-made products is a matter of personal priorities Whatever the reason cost quality ethics or desire shoppers will need to do particular research Depending on the product cost-conscious consumers may have to make the decision between supporting domestic manufacturing and buying what s affordable Are tariffs bringing manufacturing back to the U S It s unclear if President Donald Trump s tariffs will bring more manufacturing to U S soil as he says they will Even with tariffs particular companies may still find it cheaper to manufacture goods in countries where costs of labor sourcing and production are less expensive Still domestic manufacturing is growing The majority of latest details shows that in March spending on manufacturing construction was higher than a year earlier It s part of a broader upward trend that began in But bringing manufacturing back to the U S also known as reshoring won t happen overnight It takes time to build factories fill positions and get production going That means that even if investments are being made there s bound to be a lag before more Made in USA products become available More From NerdWallet How to Cut Spending Without Cutting Out Small Businesses Techniques to Reduce Financial Stress During Uncertain Times How to Recession-Proof Your Grocery Budget Do s and Don ts Anna Helhoski writes for NerdWallet Email anna nerdwallet com Twitter AnnaHelhoski The article Facing Tariffs Should Shoppers Seek Made in USA Goods originally appeared on NerdWallet