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The trade war between Canada and the U.S. is bringing more customers to some local businesses, at least temporarily.
Shabeen Shakoor has been working at Saskatoon Appliance for six years. He said that ever since the most recent trade negotiations between Canada and the U.S. fell apart, there’s been an influx of customers to the business.
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Usually, about 30 people come in every two weeks, he said. But in the last two weeks, that number has spiked to 50.
Though summer can mean lower sales at the appliance store, Shakoor said the influx is more than a seasonal change tied to the end of vacation season. According to him, people are chasing peace of mind and trying to lock in the lowest appliance prices before counter-tariffs take effect.
People who were previously on the fence are deciding to order now, he said.
It’s not just that more customers are coming in; they’re also re-considering which brands to buy because of the tensions.
“They are pissed off about the current tensions with the U.S.,” Shakoor said.
Between 10 and 15 customers have come in and asked, “‘What do you guys have? Anything but U.S. (products).’”
People who are doing renovations or building a new house, he said, “just want to support anything, any brand that’s not built in the U.S.”
While Saskatoon Appliance’s “bread and butter” is Whirlpool, an American brand, he said people are finding alternatives. Sales of LG and Frigidaire have increased because “they are non-U.S. products,” according to Shakoor.
Consequences of the unknown
Even if Shakoor isn’t stressed about business, the same can’t be said for Duane Thome from AC Flooring, who has seen a different side of the trade war.
Thome said the flooring company has seen a similar influx of customers, with people coming in concerned about product costs.
The issue is, “we don’t have a full understanding of how our products are going to be hit, except we do know that the carpet side of it will be anywhere from 25 to 50 per cent increase,” Thome said.
From Thome’s understanding, the tariffs will apply to the product’s point of origin, though it’s hard to know what that will do to pricing.
“Especially the carpets, they can jump anywhere from $5 a square foot to $10 a square foot, and that’s a huge increase to us and for the customers purchasing it,” he said.
This uncertainty puts his business in a difficult place, according to Thome, because employees can’t give customers a final price right now.
Canada’s new counter-tariffs are scheduled to take effect on Sept. 8.
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