Colorado artist affected by tariffs, costs are pricing out her customers
A small business in Colorado is closing its doors for good as some Chinese companies are pulling out of American markets due to tariffs.
At her home studio in Longmont, Kyra Coates has a vision, and sometimes that vision goes beyond the canvas.
"I never had dreams of becoming a fashion designer. It was one of those things I fell into and found out I was really good at it," said Coates. "I begin with the painting first, and then it ends up as an outfit."
That's the idea that's kept Coates' small business running for the last decade and brought it to the Denver Fashion Week runway last year. But that's all about to change. Following the implementation of tariffs from the White House, her main supplier from China said they'd be closing down.
"So, this dress, I sell retail for $105. Now, covering the costs and markup and everything, if I manufactured this in the United States, this would easily be a $250 dress," said Coates.
The cost is pricing out her customers, so last week, Coates decided to sell what she has left and close up shop for good.
"It's really very heartbreaking for me," Coates said tearfully. "This has been a labor of love that I've been doing for a decade, and to have to walk away from it. I had investors and I had people that were supporting me and things were looking up, and this just killed it."
The uncertainty on tariffs is not just impacting Coates' business, but those throughout Colorado, getting the governor's attention last week.
"It's, frankly, an emergency for businesses because of the tariffs," said Colorado Gov. Jared Polis.
"The high-level view of having everything manufactured in the United States is a beautiful vision, but the reality of actually making that happen is devastating," Coates said. "It's devastating to small businesses like mine."
