New Brunswick·NewTwo New Brunswick businesses say changes to the United States tariff system is forcing them to not ship to American customers.Some companies choosing not to ship to the United States because of new tariffsCBC News · Posted: Sep 27, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 30 minutes agoAlicia Phillips, CEO of Educated Beards, a Fredericton-based male grooming products company, said the ongoing tariff turmoil with the United States means that ending shipments south was the only thing that made sense. (CBC)Two New Brunswick businesses say changes to the U.S. tariff system are forcing them to end shipments to American customers.Alicia Phillips, CEO of Educated Beards, a Fredericton-based male grooming products company, said the ongoing tariff turmoil with the United States means that ending shipments south was the only thing that made sense.”It is honestly making it nearly impossible to guarantee a smooth, affordable experience for American customers,” said Phillips. “We decided to just close temporarily and rather than risking delayed packages and surprise fees for people, we’ll reopen when we can, when it’s fair and we can provide a reliable service. We just can’t do that right now.”Alicia Nicholson, owner of Nackawick’s Upfront Cosmetics, said the decision to stop shipping to Americans wasn’t easy to make and wasn’t something she had ever thought would happen.But recent weeks have forced her hand, if only for her customers’ sake.”Some orders are getting halfway to the border and being turned around … before they’re ever processed,” said Nicholson. “The ones that do make it there to be processed, we’ve seen tariffs anywhere from 300 to 500 per cent being charged on them with no justification behind it.”De minimis shippingThe issue at the heart of the businesses’ decision not to ship products south is the Trump era suspension of duty-free de minimis shipping into the United States.Prior to Aug. 29, any parcel sent to the United States that was sent to a consumer that had a value of less than $800 American dollars had duties, tariffs and taxes waived.But a July 30 executive order ended the practice.The issue at the heart of the businesses’ decision not to ship products south is the Trump era suspension of duty-free de minimis shipping into the United States. (Alex Brandon/The Associated Press)In the order, the Trump administration indicated the move was to fight the largely debunked issue of drug shipments from Canada into the United States.”The risks of evasion, deception, and illicit-drug importation are particularly high for low-value articles that have been eligible for duty-free de minimis treatment,” reads the executive order.In 2024, American border officials seized 5,260 kilograms of drugs coming from Canada. That same year Canadian border officials seized 8,300 kilograms coming from the United States.Knock-on effectsWhile Phillips acknowledges sales to the United States make up a relatively small portion of the company’s orders, the ongoing border friction is having a greater impact.”A lot of Canadian businesses rely on smooth cross-border transactions not just for selling a product, but for materials, for packaging, for expansion,” said Phillips.”When these barriers go up, it really limits both sides of the border.”Nicholson said about 30 per cent of her customers are American.Phillips said there is one thing that’s needed before she would consider shipping south again: stability. (Carlo Allegri/Reuters)She’s now looking at expanding the business in Canada to supplement the lost revenue, but that’s not a simple fix.”The U.S. market has about 10 times as many people as the Canadian marketplace,” said Nicholson.Phillips said one thing that’s needed before she would consider shipping south again is stability.”It’s OK if there are changes, we can work with that. But the fast-paced changes where people can’t keep up, that is what’s causing the most difficulty right now.”With files from Shift
Tariff turmoil costs New Brunswick companies American customers
