CARBONDALE, Ill. (WSIL) -- One local restaurant is already experiencing the challenges of tariffs impacting business first hand.
Rising tariffs on imported goods may put pressure on restaurants and international grocery stores, threatening their ability to keep shelves stocked and menus affordable.
The Carbondale Chinese restaurant, New Kahala, released a Facebook post saying they have directly been impacted by the tariffs. In the social media post New Kahala explains, "Our brands have doubled or tripled in prices. Our primary soy sauce, a critical ingredient to our restaurant, a brand we've used for over 30 years is experiencing shipping or/and purchase issues."
To get a broader picture, we spoke with businesses within the Murdale Shopping Center to see if other businesses that rely on imported goods are experiencing similar challenges.
Owner of Fresh Foods, a produce market with imported produce from countries like Canada, said they have experienced some price increases but nothing significantly notable.
Management at the Taste Buds Snacks echoes the same. Marvin Porter, owner of Taste Buds Snacks candy store says they order snacks from countries like Italy, France, Germany, Egypt, Japan, China and more.
"When the tariffs first happened, my shipping was like held up for about a week and a half. After that, all the stuff got cleared. Everything's been smooth ever since that," said Porter, "Not one dime increase on any of the products that I have been ordering."
The owner of International Groceries in the Murdale Shopping Center mentioned one product from an Indian wholesaler that had a surprisingly high price on the invoice due to the tariffs. Aside from that single instance, they said business has been normal.
However, they did express concern about the speed at which the tariffs took effect and are worried about the future, given their heavy reliance on imported goods.
