From Nespresso to Botox: Here's what US buyers may be paying more for after Trump tariffs
AbbVie reported almost $1.7bn (€1.5bn) of Botox cosmetic sales in 2024.
With US tariffs on almost every country now in effect, Americans are lamenting pending prices hikes for Champagne, Parmesan and Ferraris.
But the impact on pockets goes far beyond things like luxury cars and specialist foods. As the new levies take effect – starting Saturday for the 10% base rate – manufacturers and suppliers of everything from daily supermarket goods to shoes, from beauty products to sex toys, have to figure out how much of this extra cost to pass on to customers.
During Trump's first term when he imposed much more limited tariffs on China, many companies reported they lacked pricing power to pass on costs to consumers.
Here are some of the under-the-radar imports that could now get more expensive.
Joe Biden’s Ray-Ban Aviators were an integral part of his look. The iconic sunglasses, first commissioned by the US Army Air Corps in the 1930s and later worn by Tom Cruise in the Top Gun movies, helped the former president craft his All-American image.
Yet most aviators are actually produced in a tiny mountain village on the Italian Dolomites before they’re shipped all across the world, including to America.
That’s because Ray-Ban, along with other popular brands including Oakley, Oliver Peoples and Vogue Eyewear, is owned by the French-Italian eye-wear giant EssilorLuxottica SA, the biggest company in the sector with a market cap exceeding €100bn. In 2024, its sales to North America amounted to almost €12bn.
With the European Union now facing a 20% rate — once the reciprocal tariffs kick in on April 9 — accessorising like Cruise’s Maverick character could get a lot more expensive.
Nestle SA’s Nespresso coffee capsules may be sold worldwide — about 14bn of them a year, according to estimates — but every one is still made in just three factories in Switzerland.
Imports from Switzerland to the US are facing a tariff of 31% (much higher than the neighboring EU). Nespresso global sales amounted to 6.4bn Swiss francs (€6.8bn) in 2024, Nestle figures show.
Americans eyeing cosmetic beauty treatments may have to eventually fork out more for their anti-wrinkle injections. While specific levies on pharmaceuticals haven’t been announced yet, there’s concern that the escape may prove temporary.
AbbVie, the company behind Botox, makes almost of all of the product in Westport, Co Mayo. Production takes place in a highly secure plant given Botox is made from one of the world’s most toxic substances, botulinum toxin. Any price increases from tariffs will hit US consumers as Botox for aesthetic purposes isn’t covered by insurance. AbbVie reported almost $1.7bn (€1.5bn) of Botox cosmetic sales in 2024.
Some companies have already given hints as to how they may respond to tariffs, and how all the price pain may not necessarily fall on American shoppers.
On a recent earnings call, executives at Birkenstock said the German company “historically had the ability to take pricing action globally” to offset pressures like tariffs. That suggests it may try to cover US levies by spreading out any price increases.
Like other firms, it also said that it looks at costs and efficiencies as a way to protect margins. Most manufacturing is done at sites in Germany, but the Americas is the sandal maker’s biggest market, with almost €950m in annual revenue.
A major supplier of high-tech hospital beds is Linet Group in the Czech Republic. The company said that for future contracts with US clients, it will have to raise prices and focus more on higher-end products with higher price tags and profit margins. That could have implications for health providers in a country where there is already huge controversy over healthcare costs. According to Chief Executive Officer Tomas Kolar, exports to the US account for about 20% of its €370m in annual sales.
Bloomberg
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