Columbus brewery braces for impact from tariffs
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- Less than a week after President Donald Trump’s 25% tariff increase on all aluminum imports went into effect, some central Ohio businesses are bracing for impact.
Bob Szuter is the co-owner of Wolf’s Ridge Brewing in Downtown Columbus. He said math is already tight with the brewery coming off of a season of slow demand and is getting ready to take another hit.
“My parents, my wife and I own this and this is something that's really important for us to see succeed in this community,” Szuter said.
Wolf’s Ridge Brewing cans all of its own beers with aluminum at its production facility. Following these new tariffs, Szuter said their supplier warned them to expect a six to eight percent price increase.
“Unfortunately we’re in a very just-in-time situation," Szuter said. "We don't have the cash reserves to be able to stockpile inventory."
He said it will leave them no choice but to also increase their prices.
“We really tried to keep those low over the past five years and make sure that we're not putting too much pressure on the end consumer,” he said.
While the owners work to find solutions for their beers, Szuter said they’re also preparing to get hit by tariffs on food.
“A lot of our food does come from outside the United States,” he said “We do get a lot of fish from Canada.”
NBC4 reached out to the Brewer’s Association, which said, “These tariffs could place a significant financial burden on brewers, many of whom rely on imported materials, ingredients and equipment."
Szuter said he’s worried it could go as far as causing many small businesses to close.
“I can't overstate how tight the margins are, especially on the production side. I think every brewery of our size that is doing wholesale distribution is running a really tight margin environment,” he said.
Szuter said he knows this also puts customers in a difficult position as well but asks them to have patience with all small businesses as they work to navigate this.