A Note About Tariffs

UPDATE #2 (Sept. 19/25): With the $800 de minimus shipping exemption now gone, we've gone through the process of combing through our inventory and adjusting where necessary product country of origin and Harmonized Sales codes, as products from different countries have different tariff rates thanks to the U.S. Government's new rules. Tariffs are being charged & invoiced to us, which is beyond frustrating as Shopify hasn't made the integration to accurately including customs fees into our checkout - sadly the actual cost of tariffs (if applicable) aren't calculated until a parcel has been shipped and reaches US Customs, so we're essentially out of pocket for these costs until Shopify figures out a simple way to integrate tariffs into the shipping cost at checkout or we invoice after the fact to recoup our losses. We can guesstimate tariff costs at our end, but only on the percentage of the yarn based upon country of origin, as there's now two new businesses that we're being forced to deal with to even just allow for the standard post office shipping to the US to be a website option, plus they facilitate customs & brokerage fees so they each naturally take their pound of flesh out of our bottom line. I suspect many small businesses - both Canadian & American - are getting killed sales-wise right now, if even only for the hesitancy of the public to make cross-border purchases as this whole tariff mess has been handled so poorly. Canada Post hasn't made things easy either as some of our Canadian yarns are supposedly still exempt from tariffs through the CUSMA trade agreements, but CP is refusing to integrate this into their shipping system, leaving many small businesses to switch to courier companies to handle US shipments at triple the cost to avoid the headaches of up-front tariff charges. And the really stupid thing about all this is that in October the US Supreme Court is supposed to be looking at legal challenges to the validity of the US Government's imposition of these tariff rates, so all this crap might be moot in a matter of weeks. In the meantime, hang tight, pretty pretty please continue supporting small businesses that ship between Canada & the US, and we'll get through this stupidity. Oh, and if you're ordering from us from Canada or the UK/EU and abroad, it is business as usual, so thank you for your continued support.

- Ron

UPDATE: The moment after I posted this blog post, the US government put a pause on tariffs until April 2. I still believe it's important for all of us, on both sides of the border, to understand what this really means for both of us, so I will keep this post up for your information.

As you may have heard, the US government has levied a 25% tariff on goods entering the US from Canada. This blog post is for your information and to tell you how Indigodragonfly will be working within this new system.

The good news: Tariffs do not apply to goods under $800 US at this time due to a de minimus exception. However this may change in the future.

About the tariffs and what they mean for US customers

Tariffs of this kind are imposed by a government as a tax on goods imported into their country (duty). This tariff is not something that we, as a Canadian company, have any control over. It's not a tariff that we pay, but one that's added on to your package when it's delivered to you. 

We do not charge it.

We do not collect it.

The tariff in no way affects how we do business or how we price our yarn and other goods. The tariff is the sole responsibility of the US government, and will be charged on goods imported by the US over $800. This will affect your food supplies, your power and energy costs, and many, many other aspects of your daily life. If this angers you, we recommend calling your Member of Congress and telling them.

I can't stress enough that this tariff is out of the control of companies like ours.

What happens when the tariffs come into effect
The word "tariff" strikes fear into us, and 25% is a LOT!

However, when we break down what that actually looks like, you will find it brings our prices on par with the low end of US dyers working with similar bases.

When the tariffs do come into play for goods under $800 US, you will be charged 25% on every order by the US government, in the US. Due to the exchange rate of the Canadian dollar to US dollar, this may not be as bad as you think. As I write this, $1 CDN is worth $0.69 USD. This means that one skein of Cariboubaa at $34 CDN is valued at $23.46 USD. If we add the 25% tariff on top of that, the skein will be $29.33 USD. This is actually a comparable price to US dyers using a similar base ($30 to $35 per skein) 

Our commitment to you
As I said, at this time, there is no 25% tariff being levied on packages under $800 US. If you happen to have a package that is valued at over $800 US, we will break up your order into two packages and will cover the shipping of the second package ourselves.

We will continue to dye our beautiful yarns for you, and to keep our prices as low as possible to help us all weather these changes. We hope you will keep supporting us, and being part of our community.

We love all of our customers and are proud of the community we have built around our yarn. We are here after 15 years because of you.