Canada’s latest retaliatory tariffs came into effect on Tuesday, and Calgary businesses are trying to determine how they’ll affect their costs, suppliers and bottom lines. For some, the immediate impact is limited. But others say uncertainty over where products are sourced and how they’re classified under the tariffs is already affecting business decisions. At espy Experience in Inglewood, owner Megan Szanik is expanding her store and says even buying matching carpet has become complicated. “We think there’s a 50 per cent tariff, but it might be a 25 per cent tariff, but we’re not actually sure,” Szanik said. She said she’s budgeting roughly 30 per cent more for some expansion materials because she doesn’t always know where products have been sourced or how they’ll be affected. Szanik has also changed how she buys inventory, moving away from U.S. trade shows and importing directly from Europe. “The confusion for business owners, especially small business owners, is just mind boggling,” she said. At Tuxedo Source for Sports in northeast Calgary, general manager Ryan Roetsch said the impact of the new levies varies by sport. Roetsch has avoided the new tariffs against hockey sticks because he imports hockey equipment from Canadia subsidiaries. Baseball equipment, however, could be more exposed to new duties. “The baseball side will be interesting because there are U.S. companies that we do deal with that we do import from, and that remains to be seen,” Roetsch said. The uncertainty is also being felt in Alberta’s agriculture sector, where farmers are watching closely as tariffs add another challenge to an already difficult market. “We are all worried about it. It creates uncertainty,” Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Heath MacDonald told reporters in the Calgary-area on Tuesday. “But again, I think farmers are resilient and we will get through it and we will come out of this on the other end being much wiser.” Businesses say they’re looking for ways to limit their exposure by diversifying suppliers, finding Canadian alternatives and absorbing costs where possible. For Szanik, that means leaning further into Canadian brands. She said her store carries about 15 Canadian brands and customers are increasingly asking for Canadian-made products. “Made in Canada is extremely important, and we’re really happy that people are willing to support made in Canada,” she said.
