Hello again Adventurers, 

Well, a lot has changed since the last update.  

As you might be aware there have been a lot of changes going on with import tariffs to the US. At Midnight tonight the new base import tariff on goods coming from China to the US will be 104%  It is actually more than that depending on the specific good, but I digress.

This is an issue because enamel pins are almost exclusively made in China.  I started my business in 2017 and while I continue to search, I have never found a US pin manufacturer, only middlemen who lie and then have the pins made in China like everyone else does.  So domestic production is not an option for me or any other pin designer.

Well, for you, hopefully it won’t mean anything.  My sincere hope is that in about two months I will receive the pins, give them an inspection and begin shipping them out to you.

It is a bit of a different story for me though.  This tariff situation basically means that the cost to me to have the pins produced and shipped to me has unexpectedly doubled.  I know when you see a bigger campaign like this one the numbers look impressive, but the profit margins on pins are relatively thin to begin with.  If I am very lucky this project will end up breaking even now.  The only real positive is that I order extras to account for production flaws, and I can likely sell those extras in my shop later for a very small profit.  

I don’t think I have much more to say about it for the moment.  I will be happy to answer any questions or concerns you might have.  

Kindest regards, 

Joshua R Pinkas