Navigating the Storm: What Escalating Tariffs Mean for ABU and Our Community
Hey folks,
It’s me again – the ABU Comms Doggo – with an important update on the evolving trade landscape and how it might impact all of us in the ABDL community. We’ve had a lot of messages from you lately, and we hear your concerns. This post aims to offer transparency about what we know, what’s happening behind the scenes, and how ABU is planning for what may lie ahead.
A Quick Recap: How We Got Here
At the start of 2025, tariffs on goods imported from China, including nearly all ABDL products, sat at 7.5%. It was a figure we’d been living with for years and had absorbed into our cost structure.
Fast forward just a few months, and the situation has shifted dramatically. Tariffs were suddenly raised to 17.5% (February) and then again to 27.5% (March).
Now, based on official tariff sheets, not just headlines, we thought we were facing the implementation of a further 35% additional rate but even as I drafted this post over a couple of days, with the unfolding political back and forth, that jumped in a few big steps to where we were currently – 125% *additional* tariff on top of the 27.5%. That’s 152.5% total!
Yes, you read that right: from 7.5% to over 152.5% in a matter of months.
An Unstable Landscape for Everyone
One of the biggest challenges right now is the pace and unpredictability of these changes. Trade policy, once the realm of careful negotiation and structured implementation, is increasingly being announced via social media, leaving businesses scrambling to interpret and respond to sudden, complex shifts.
As a niche manufacturer and community-first brand, ABUniverse has always worked hard to absorb costs where we can and maintain consistency in our pricing and products. But this current climate is making that mission more difficult than ever before.
We’re not the only ones facing these challenges. Every ABDL brand and vendor is being affected. While we can’t speak for others, it’s a near certainty that prices will continue to rise across the board so that the brands you rely on can simply keep their doors open. We cannot mitigate such a sudden shift in our manufacturing costs.
What ABU Is Doing?
When the first round of tariff increases hit, we made the decision to incorporate the cost directly into our core pricing. We didn’t inflate the increase figures beyond the increases themselves, and we didn’t mark them up for profit. Why?
In part, expectation management. During the last major tariff cycle between the Trump and Biden administrations, that 7.5% became a new norm. We expect the same could happen again with at least some of what we are seeing implemented. By folding these changes into our base costs and restructuring our bulk discount model, we can still offer savings where it makes the most sense, especially for larger orders where we can streamline shipping and logistics behind the scenes.
This allows us to protect pricing for as long as possible, especially for those who are able to support us by purchasing in bulk. I have to highlight that as the numbers climb, our ability to shield the community from further increases diminishes more and more.
We intentionally decided not to mark up the recent tariff increases, but instead to pass them through at cost. In most industries, increases to the cost of goods are multiplied, sometimes significantly, to give a retail price. That’s standard practice. But we’re not just any business; we’re part of a community, an ABDL business top to bottom. This is another decision where we are again doing what we can to shield our customers from compounding increases and maintain fair, transparent pricing for the products you love.
What Might This Mean for the Community?
This goes beyond pricing.
We’re immensely proud of the work we’ve done over the years to bring ABU and by extension, the ABDL community into new and exciting spaces. From partnering with events and title holders, to sponsoring kink nights, to sending free samples to cons and meet-ups, our goal has always been to support, build and encourage space for the community, especially in places we haven’t historically been welcome.
But that work is expensive. And as our production and import costs rise, we’ll need to make careful decisions about how and where we show up in the future.
That doesn’t mean we’re pulling back from our values or our community. But it does mean being thoughtful, intentional, and honest about what’s possible in this current climate.
Will Prices Go Down?
That’s the question on everyone’s mind and honestly, it’s on ours too. While we are committed to fair, transparent pricing and will always pass on savings when we can, the reality is that any price decrease depends on more than just tariffs rolling back.
Many of the materials used to make ABU products have supply chains that are deeply interconnected across borders. For example, some raw materials used in all of our diapers begin life in the USA, are exported to China for processing and manufacturing, and are then re-imported as part of our finished products.
In a tariff environment like this, where taxes apply in both directions, costs are increasing at multiple stages before a product even reaches a ship to sail on to us. These pressures aren’t limited to our U.S. operations; they also affect our pricing and planning in other regions globally.
If and when tariffs ease or trade conditions improve, we’ll re-evaluate our costs just as quickly as we’ve responded to the increases. We’re not here to artificially inflate prices, we’re here to keep producing the products you love in a sustainable, community-minded way.
A Moment for Perspective
Let’s be real for a second.
The “A” in ABDL stands for Adult and sometimes that means facing hard truths and planning responsibly. ABU and other ABDL brands create luxury products: premium, custom-designed items made specifically for the ABDL community, which have also become beloved tools for caregivers, little space players, and folks managing incontinence in a more playful way.
We know these aren’t just “products”, they’re part of your identity, expression, and comfort. And just as we’re now watching our pennies, we know many of you will be doing the same.
How You Can Help
This is where community matters most.
If you love what we do and want to support us through this uncertain time, here are a few simple ways:
- Stock up when you can. Buying in bulk is the most economic way to shop with us.
- Grab some merch. Every hat, pin or sticker you pick up helps fund us doing cool and new things.
- Tell your friends about this post. We know people have questions and we’re trying to give candid answers. Word-of-mouth helps keep our community informed and therefore strong through these challenging times.
Every little bit really does help, and we’re so grateful to have such a passionate, understanding group of crinkle cuties riding this rollercoaster with us.
What Comes Next?
We’ll continue to keep you informed with as much clarity and transparency as possible. A further price increase is unavoidable. We will be watching the situation over the next few days and calculating what that is going to look like. Behind the scenes, we’re exploring every option to soften the blow, from smarter packaging to tighter shipping routes and more efficient warehouse operations.
Some community voices have speculated that certain brands might raise prices “early.” It’s important to understand: tariffs are paid upfront, at the time of import, not later down the line. With the volume of goods ABU has constantly in motion toward the U.S., we don’t have the luxury of waiting to respond. A sudden jump in tariffs means we have to be ready to cover that increase immediately. To avoid putting the business or community supply at risk, we expect we’ll need to adjust our pricing very soon to stay ahead of those landing costs.
One thing won’t change: our commitment to quality, community, and making the best diapers in the world.
So from all of us at ABU – including this spreadsheet-wrangling, tail-wagging comms doggo – thank you. Thanks for sticking with us, for understanding, and for continuing to show up. We’ll keep showing up too.
With love, crinkles, and gratitude,
– Miles & The Team at ABU HQ
