Study: Nearly 75% of U.S. retail businesses have already lost profit due to tariffs
Tariff volatility has become a critical threat to business profitability.
The majority (73%) of U.S. retail companies are already experiencing profit losses due to tariff impacts, according to research conducted by AI-driven rebate and pricing management platform Enable. Also, 90% of U.S. retailers fear the impact of tariffs during the next 12 months, with a third “extremely concerned.”
With 30% of the average U.S. retail business’ cost base exposed to tariffs, this anxiety reflects a significant risk to profits, noted Enable.
The research also revealed a gap between the speed of tariff changes and businesses' ability to respond. While 73% of companies plan to increase prices to offset tariff impacts, 37% admit it takes weeks or months to implement price changes.
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“The lag between tariff updates and implementing price changes creates a window where competitors with faster pricing capabilities can capture significant market advantage," said Andrew Butt, founder and CEO of Enable.
Beyond raising prices as their primary response to tariff pressures, 57% of businesses will reduce costs elsewhere, and 45% are considering scaling back or withdrawing from high-tariff markets entirely.
Other findings from the Enable study are below:
- Despite 98% viewing pricing as a strategic lever, one in eight lack confidence in their organization's pricing strategy.
- Customer relationships add another layer of complexity, with 79% fearing customer sensitivity to tariff-related price changes and 88% of businesses concerned about negatively impacting relationships due to pricing changes.
- Systems limitations was identified as the second biggest barrier to pricing agility after customer pushback. Sixty-nine percent of businesses expect to invest in new pricing tools within the next 12 months, while 76% have already reviewed or updated their pricing processes due to market volatility.
“As trade tensions show no signs of abating, the research highlights that building pricing resilience has become an urgent strategic priority,” said Butt. “Organizations that can rapidly assess tariff impacts, model response scenarios, and execute changes will be best positioned to protect margins and establish a competitive market advantage.”
All research was conducted by Censuswide among 1,500 senior business leaders with pricing responsibility across retail, FMCG, manufacturing, and wholesale distribution in the US, UK and DACH region. The data was collected between June 19-30.
