Temu Adds 'Import Charges' to Offset Tariffs
Chinese e-tailer Temu has started adding “import charges” of about 145 percent in response to President Donald Trump’s tariffs. The fees, which began appearing over the weekend after price hikes went into effect on Friday, cost more than the individual products consumers are buying and can more than double the price of a typical order. For example, a summer dress sold on Temu for $18.47 will cost $44.68 after $26.21 in import charges are added to the bill, a 142 percent surcharge, a CNBC analysis shows.
Rival discount retailer Shein has also hiked prices on its site, but is not implementing import charges. Shein added a banner at checkout that states, “Tariffs are included in the price you pay. You’ll never have to pay extra at delivery.”
Total Retail's Take: With a 145 percent tariff on many imports from China and the looming threat of the end of the de minimis exemption on May 2, leading Chinese e-tailers Temu and Shein were going to need to take action to address the rising costs that would soon be hitting their businesses. And they are doing so in two ways: one, both Temu and Shein announced they would be raising prices on the goods that consumers are buying. Two, Temu is taking the additional step of adding an "import charge" to its checkout process to help recoup some of the extra costs of doing business.
It will be interesting to see the impact that these higher costs for the consumer will have on Temu's business. The discount retailer grew market share in the U.S. rapidly on the value proposition that everyday consumers could “Shop like a billionaire,” taking advantage of ultra-low prices on clothing, electronics and home goods, compromising with longer delivery times to receive their goods. With higher prices and those longer delivery windows, will Temu lose its appeal to American consumers? We're about to find out.
