All four of these businesses are weighing uncertainty.

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Follow the tariffs. That’s what we’re doing with a handful of Minnesota businesses over the next several months.

From textiles to toys, imports to exports, President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs have left everyone with a tale to tell.

Curio Rugs – Deephaven

Based in Deephaven, Amanda Birnie founded Curio Rugs, a vintage, imported rug business, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I sourced 30-some rugs, and put them on the internet and they were gone,” said Birnie. “From there, I grew from being an Instagram shop to a full-blown e-commerce shop.”

Here’s the issue. Every single hand-sewn rug is imported from Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and Turkey where rug making dates back thousands of years.

Her most recent shipment cost the same until it arrived at a U.S. port.

“By the time it got to us we got a little surprise bill that was about $1,700. We were not even able to get the product until we paid,” said Birnie.

That payment was a 10% tariff which Birnie had to cover.

She said she has enough inventory for now, but she said prices will have to go up if the tariffs stick around.

“Right now, it’s ten [percent], I don’t think we could sustain our business at 29%,” said Birnie.

Faribault Mill – Faribault

Sixty miles south of the Twin Cities, another textile business has an entirely different tariff story.

Ross Widmoyer is CEO of Faribault Mill, the longest-standing Minnesota manufacturer. Domestically sourced wool is turned into handmade, hand-stitched and hand-folded blankets. They’ve been doing it since 1865.

“There are a lot of people over the years who’ve said, ‘take the name of Faribault and buy product overseas — your margins will be much greater, and the economic value will be there,’” said Widmoyer. “And to the credit of current ownership group and previous ownership groups, they said no.”

Those decisions have made Faribault Mill a shining example of a U.S. company insulated from tariffs — even getting new business opportunities from companies now looking for tariff-free sources of textiles.

“Because of the investments we’ve made here over the last 160 years, we’ve actually lowered prices on some of our best-selling products here,” said Widmoyer.

Corn and Soybean Farm – Wells

From here we head to the farm in Wells, Minnesota.

Fourth-generation farmer Darin Johnson knows speculating is part of the industry, even in an unprecedented trade war.

“The price of soybeans sagged down some,” said Johnson. “It’s come back just a little bit.”

He adjusted his planting this year: 5% more corn and 5% fewer soybeans as the relationship with America’s number one soybean buyer — China — is uncertain.

That country’s tariffs topped out at 147% in April but have cooled to about 33% for now.

While the nation’s posture, the crops grow, and the farmers work and wait.

“Short-term impact is going to be pretty negative. But as a farmer, we are trying to be patient and hoping that there is better trade deals that come from this,” said Johnson.

Down in the Valley – Golden Valley

Back up to Golden Valley, at Down in the Valley record store, tariffs are striking a blue note.

“The problem is as a small retailer, we can’t just absorb these small added costs,” said Scott Farrell, general manager of Down in the Valley. “We are already running on thin margins the way it is. So, we have to pass that onto the consumer.”

Sixty percent of the products he sells are imported. Suppliers of action figures, toys, incense and turntables are already charging higher prices.

“The entry-level turntable retailed at 129. Now it’s at 179,” said Farrell.

Music is typically exempt from tariffs thanks to the Berman Amendment. Passed in 1988 by Congress, it prevents any U.S. president from regulating the import of informational and cultural arts like music, films and publications.

Though Farrell said the cost of making the albums may still go up.

“There’s a lot of manufacturing of records in the United States today, but a lot of things that make up the record, the PVC and the printing of the record jackets are usually done in Canada or Mexico,” said Farrell.

For now, he’s not sure what, when or how much to order.

How long will it last?

All four of these businesses are weighing uncertainty. They all say it’s extremely difficult to plan when the rules and costs keep changing. Faribault Mill is the exception here. Its costs haven’t moved, but the CEO said the one concern he has is the effect tariffs might have on consumer spending.