Trump says furniture tariffs will make NC great again, but it’s not that simple | Opinion
President Donald Trump’s latest round of tariffs is aimed at reviving an industry that was once a pillar of North Carolina’s economy: furniture manufacturing.
“In order to make North Carolina, which has completely lost its furniture business to China, and other Countries, GREAT again, I will be imposing substantial Tariffs on any Country that does not make its furniture in the United States,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Monday. “Details to follow!!!”’
The White House later announced those tariffs will apply to imports of timber, lumber and wood products such as kitchen cabinets and upholstered furniture.
In theory, it sounds like a nice idea. But in reality, things are hardly that simple.
There are a few problems. For one, it’s not realistic to expect companies to suddenly shift operations back to the U.S. There are some furniture companies that already produce domestically and may be able to ramp up that production relatively quickly. But there are also plenty of companies that don’t, and even if they can afford to significantly scale up domestic production, building up the factories and workforce required to do that is a process that can take years. And if tariffs hurt their business in the meantime, they might not survive long enough to even make that pivot.
Besides, those factories don’t appear out of nowhere, nor do the employees that would work in them. Even now, some furniture companies are struggling to find workers for the manufacturing jobs that do exist, because there’s a skilled worker shortage and an aging manufacturing workforce that leaves many jobs vacant. One community college in Hickory has found success in training people for furniture jobs to replenish the dwindling pipeline, but it’s still not enough to keep up with demand for workers in the region.
There’s also the fact that Trump’s other tariffs create supply chain issues. Even companies that do make their furniture in the U.S. often source raw materials and parts globally, which are now subject to their own tariffs as well. That will make domestic production more expensive and more difficult, at least until lumber and steel suppliers can ramp up their U.S. production. Companies will eventually have to pass those price hikes down to consumers, who may not be willing to pay more for furniture if it’s not an immediate need.
And what about the furniture that North Carolina currently exports? According to the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina, our state exports nearly $300 million worth of furniture each year, which could decrease if other countries introduce retaliatory tariffs and no longer import as many U.S. goods.
It’s true that North Carolina’s once-booming furniture industry is a shell of what it once was. The ability to import furniture from overseas at a lower cost meant it no longer made sense for companies to manufacture furniture domestically, so manufacturing jobs in North Carolina dried up quickly. That hurt a lot of communities, many of which haven’t been the same since. It’s understandable why people might want to return to the past.
But the industry has changed with the times, and it’s better to figure out how to adapt than to try to return to something that will never be the same again. The jobs that left North Carolina two decades ago aren’t necessarily the same jobs that would come back, even if companies do start to reshore their manufacturing. The industry has changed, the processes have modernized, and things are more automated than they once were.
Using tariffs as a tool for economic revitalization is a short-sighted, knee-jerk strategy. You can’t tariff life back into an industry — but you can make investments that will help you keep up with change. North Carolina’s furniture industry isn’t the same as it used to be, but it still exists — hundreds of manufacturers support tens of thousands of jobs and generate billions of dollars in revenue. Trump may think tariffs will revive the industry, but it’s more likely that they’ll threaten what’s left of it.
