How Remote Founders Are Navigating the 2025 Tariff Surge

If there's one thing we've learned from building location-independent businesses, it's this: change is inevitable. Sometimes it comes fast and furious, like it did in 2020 when global supply chains froze overnight. And sometimes, it builds slowly and then surges, like the 2025 tariff escalations now reshaping how entrepreneurs source, ship, and sell around the world.

Inside Dynamite Circle, we've seen and weathered these challenges before. And once again, our community of global founders is not just surviving. We're adapting, strategizing, and finding ways to thrive.

The Challenge: Tariffs Redefining the Playing Field

In early 2025, U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports soared to 125%, with some categories facing effective rates as high as 245%. China hit back with similar increases in levies on American imports. At the same time, the de minimis loophole—which previously allowed shipments under $800 to enter the U.S. duty-free—was effectively closed, with new per-item duties imposed starting in May.

These policy changes are very nuanced, but one thing is certain: they hit the core of both consumer behavior and entrepreneur operations. E-commerce and Amazon business owners inside the DC felt the pressure first and hardest.

And the most challenging aspect? Uncertainty. The trade environment remains volatile, with updates coming in rapidly and unpredictably. Will tariffs spike even higher? Could they reverse just as fast? For founders building sustainable businesses, planning in this environment requires both agility and foresight.

How Founders Are Responding

Scenario Planning Without Overcommitting

One e-commerce founder, who has been scaling product brands since 2016, outlined a careful roadmap: sourcing quotes from Mexico and Brazil, preparing to shift molds out of China if needed, but placing one final large China order while watching how tariffs actually play out.

Thoughtful Diversification

Another member, running a $1M subscription box supply company, is scouting factories in Vietnam and Indonesia for Bluetooth speakers and related products. While recognizing that not every product can move overnight (toy drones, for example, still rely heavily on Chinese infrastructure), the mindset is clear: build optionality into the supply chain.

Most DC members aren't pursuing reshoring to the U.S., as the costs and complexity of moving manufacturing domestically remain prohibitive for smaller, bootstrapped brands. Instead, they're "globe-hopping" to other low-tariff countries, understanding that supply chain diversification is a long-term project that often requires years to fully implement, especially for complex products.

Price Adjustments and Transparent Communication

Several founders are testing modest price increases, explaining the impact openly to customers. As one supplement brand owner put it, "Transparency builds trust, and we're seeing customers appreciate honest conversations about why prices shift."

However, many report that customers remain highly price sensitive, making it difficult to fully pass on higher costs. This is true for founders outside the community as well: check out this interesting experiment where Afina tested a “Made in China” vs “Made in USA” price difference with their flagship product. This challenge has pushed founders to get creative with packaging, bundling, and value-added services to maintain margins without alienating customers.

Reshaping the Brand Story

For some, the tariffs are a catalyst to rethink everything. A lifestyle apparel founder, initially sourcing solely from China, is considering investing in North American manufacturing partners. His goal: create a higher-end, sustainably produced line alongside his existing products, embracing the change as a chance to evolve.

Others are exploring legal tariff mitigation strategies like bonded warehouses or tariff engineering, though these require specialized expertise that many are finding through connections in the DC community.

Lessons from the Past: We've Been Here Before

For many DCers, the 2020 pandemic wasn't just a business disruption; it was a proving ground. Those who stayed flexible, built diversified operations, and focused on relationships rather than quick wins emerged stronger.

We see the same patterns today.

Those rushing to "panic pivot" without real strategy risk burning out. Those willing to scenario plan, run small tests, and adapt with intention are positioning themselves to lead in the next cycle, whether tariffs persist, soften, or change shape entirely.

A Community Built for Times Like These

What's different when you're part of the DC? You don't have to figure it out alone.

Our members aren't just swapping supplier lists or venting frustrations (though there's some of that, too). We're sharing real numbers, real case studies, real strategies. And, maybe most importantly, a real sense of solidarity. Whether it's in the DC forum, our city-based WhatsApp groups, or in-person events like DC Mexico and DCBKK, the conversations are deeper, sharper, and grounded in experience.

Tariffs may be making headlines now, but challenges will always come and go. As remote founders, we know our success isn't built on stability, it's built on our ability to adapt.

If you're building a global business and want to be surrounded by founders who have seen it all and are still here, growing, learning, and winning—the DC is where those conversations are happening. Join here to unlock insights and strategies from founders with skin in the game.