Small, non-U.S. beauty brands officially have bigger problems than tariffs.
While tariffs on U.S. imports have indeed been rising in recent months, U.S. President Donald Trump’s more recent move to end de minimis, a decades-old tax exemption which allowed goods valued under $800 to cross into the U.S. duty free, has created more imminent pressure for many international brands.
The rolling back of de minimis has also prompted a growing number of international mail carriers to limit or cease shipping U.S.-bound packages, among them Germany’s Deutsche Post and DHL Parcel Germany; U.K.-based Royal Mail; Austrian Post; Correos de México and more.
As a result, many indie beauty founders are in a serious pinch.
“It’s been very concerning,” said Mabelle O’Rama, a Lebanese-British perfumer whose eponymous niche fragrance line has a 50 percent U.S. customer base. “Normally, the fourth quarter is our busiest of the year and we prepare heavily for it. Shutting down our U.S. business is not an option — we have to find a solution.”
For now, the brand has facilitated a temporary solution wherein one of its U.S.-based retailers, niche fragrance shop Stéle, will fulfill U.S.-bound orders made via the brand’s direct-to-consumer website. The partnership will be trialed for an indeterminate period of time as O’Rama seeks longer-term solutions, but her search for traditional fulfillment partners in the U.S. has proven costly. “A lot of them want a minimum of 300 orders per month, which is very high for us — for a bigger brand, that’s not an issue but for a small one that’s a massive cost.”
Mabelle O’Rama Forbidden Bloom Eau de Parfum, $185.
Courtesy
Meanwhile U.K.-based Glisten Cosmetics, best known for its colorful Wet Liners, has ceased shipping to the U.S. completely for now.
“Around 60 percent of our sales come from the U.S., so the de minimis change has landed like a real shock to the system,” said founder Natalie Chapple. “The costs across the board have gone up. Shipping, customs clearance, duties — all of it is more expensive now, and that eats straight into margins. Even with strong sales this year, the rising overheads make it harder to stay profitable.”
Jose Penalba, chief executive officer at beauty distributor Amerikas, echoed this sentiment.
“If you are below $1 million in sales, it is going to be very complicated to cover these costs. Even costs for made-in-the-USA products are rising. The customer acquisition cost is getting higher every day; shipping costs are getting higher every day — the critical size to be able to operate within the U.S. market is certainly increasing,” he said.
U.K.-based Glisten Cosmetics.
Courtesy
Marie-Pierre Blanchette, founder of Berlin-based niche fragrance brand Miskeo Parfums, estimates that between the 15 percent tariff on German imports to the U.S. and the elimination of de minimis, her $111 fragrances could cost upward of $200 for a U.S. customer.
“It would be ridiculous for your customers to want to pay that, but also, my business is too small to be able to handle those extra costs,” said Blanchette, who has halted orders to the U.S., home to around 25 percent of her customers.
4160 Tuesdays, a U.K.-based niche fragrance brand whose 50-ml. bottles sell for 100 pounds, has also put U.S. order on pause. The decision came after a U.S. customer told the brand she had been charged the 10 percent tariff, plus state tax and an administration charge by DHL in order to receive her package. “She didn’t want to pay the additional fees because she had no warning, so we paid them because having it sent back or destroyed would be even more expensive,” founder Sarah McCartney said.
The tumult of the U.K.’s mail services only makes matters hazier.
“We’re not sure when we can start shipping to the U.S. again. Perfume is flammable, so we can’t use international post, we have specialist accounts with DHL and FedEx, who have not yet replied to our emails — I think they’re too busy firefighting,” said McCartney.
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