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On 2 April 2025, US president Donald Trump announced a barrage of global tariff hikes, in what the White House administration dubbed “liberation day”. Since then, his plans have caused international disruption by imposing a blanket 10% tariff on all countries and “individualised” tariffs for specific countries, such as an increase of 145% for China, 46% for Vietnam and 32% for Taiwan.
It led to weeks of economic uncertainty, followed by an injunction brought by a US trade court to block the tariffs, which was temporarily overturned at time of publication. Beauty brands, manufacturers and consumers have been left scrambling for clarity, with an increasing rise in prices as logistics in the US, a key market, become progressively more expensive.
Space NK informed customers via email in late April that it will be temporarily halting online purchases for US customers in order to adapt to incoming tariff regulations, with no mention of how long this would last.
Canadian skin care brand Temi also announced it would be suspending US e-commerce sales, while THG Holdings, parent company of Cult Beauty and Lookfantastic, warned tariffs could dent its business performance in Q3 and Q4.
Some brands have taken a strategic approach and publicly announced delayed price hikes due to come into effect over the summer, to give customers time to acclimate, and provide a safety buffer in case Trump’s tariffs change.
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