Today's Article

Maya Blackstone, CNN Producer: Bergman is closing her toy store, Westside Kids, in New York City after nearly 44 years in business. 

Jennifer Berg: The 2tariffs and the 3uncertainty around that whole 4debacle really was 5the nail in the coffin. It 6wore me out, and I looked at my numbers in May and June, and I was like, I'm done. Can't do it. I cannot pay my bills. 

CNN Producer: President Donald Trump took office. He promised 7sweeping tariffs on items shipped to the U.S. In April and July, he 8rolled out 9specifics, and many10 took effect this summer. 

“I think the tariffs are going to be the greatest thing we've ever done as a country. It's going to make our country rich again.”

CNN Producer: Could you talk about the impact that tariffs have had on your store over the last few months? 

Jennifer Berg: It really 11freaked people out. I was getting emails and phone calls from 12vendors 13left and right saying, “We’re not bringing anything in until this is over. We can't promise that you're going to have stuff on your shelves.” My scooter vendor in April, which is scooter season, called me up and said, “We’re 14rerouting two containers to Canada until this 15blows over.” So, my scooters are literally $30 more than they were in February. And that's a lot of money. Scooters are not that expensive. I can't eat it. I have to pass that on. I don't have those kinds of 16margins. The uncertainty makes it almost impossible to plan. You know, a lot of vendors wanted you to place orders before the tariffs went up. We didn't have the money. None of us have that money right now. Prices going up means I can buy less. It doesn't mean that I make more money. It's not the 17manufacturer that pays for the tariff. Tariffs are paid for by the American people. 

CNN Producer: The toy market is particularly 18volatile because many toys are manufactured overseas. What percent of toys are American made? 

Jennifer Berg: Very, very 19few and far between. The toys from our store are well over 90% made in China. 

CNN Producer: What do you say to somebody who says, well, it's better to only buy toys that are made in America? 

Jennifer Berg: I have some, but they just 20languish on the shelf. I would love to have my store full of these beautiful handmade toys made in America, but first of all, they're very expensive, and it's not really what my customers want, and most of them can't afford it. People want Jenga, they want Connect Four, they want Lego. I think that there's a 21fallacy where people think that everything that's made in China is junk. They don't understand that some of the really good quality, really beautiful toys that they have on their shelves are made in China, also. 

CNN Producer: Trump 22administration believes that tariffs will protect American industries, reduce the trade 23deficit, 24combat unfair trade practices, and address national security concerns. 

Jennifer Berg: Yeah, let's look at a game. This is Sequence. We sell a lot of them. It's very popular. Made in China. Prices don't go up that much in the toy industry. I have toys that have been sitting on my shelves for 20 years that have maybe gone up two 25bucks. 

CNN Producer: Did you ever think that you were going to become an economist, thinking about all these tariffs? 

Jennifer Berg: I don't think anyone I know thinks that I would ever be an economist.