A Texas-based experiment reveals that U.S. consumers are not favoring domestically produced showerheads, despite the imposition of tariffs on Asian imports.
What Happened: Ramon van Meer, a marketer of showerheads, conducted an online experiment to understand consumer preference between ‘Made in USA’ showerheads and cheaper Asian imports. The experiment was launched in response to the steep tariffs on Asian imports imposed by President Donald Trump earlier this spring, as per NPR report.
Van Meer offered two options on his website: an imported showerhead priced at $129 and a domestic version priced approximately $100 higher. The increased cost for the domestic option is attributed to expenses related to setting up a new supply chain in the U.S.
The two-week trial yielded clear results. Out of over 25,000 visitors to the website, around 600 ordered the imported showerhead, while none chose the more expensive, domestically produced model.
“I was expecting the cheaper, Made-in-Asia [version] to quote-unquote ‘win.’ But I was not expecting that the results were this off balance.”
Van Meer suggested that these results could potentially hinder Trump’s efforts to stimulate domestic manufacturing. He also emphasized that it’s not only about manufacturing jobs, imported products do contribute to U.S. employment, benefiting port employees, trucking companies and warehouse workers.
Why It Matters: The results of this experiment come at a time when the U.S. is preparing for a significant manufacturing boom, with nearly 4 million new factory jobs expected by 2033. However, the younger generation seems less interested in these jobs.
Another survey reveals that while 80% of Americans believe the country would benefit from more manufacturing jobs, only 25% would like to work in one. Also, in April, a report suggested that the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration may not lead to a resurgence in U.S. manufacturing, as most companies believe that reshoring supply chains could potentially double their costs.
Meanwhile, China’s factory output growth slowed in April but remained unexpectedly resilient, suggesting that government support measures may be helping offset the effects of the ongoing trade war with the U.S.
Image via Shutterstock
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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