LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – A southwest Las Vegas Asian market said tariffs are starting to take a toll – slowly but steadily.
At 2 If By Sea Asian Market, owner Roger Paul, along with his wife, built his store around what the community wanted – from noodles and sauces to unique snacks from across Asia.
“Thailand, Korea, Japan, Philippines and a little bit from China,” Paul said.
But lately, he said stocking those shelves has come at a higher cost.
“They’ve been steadily going up for the past few years,” Paul said. “It’s like, you know, every time you get a truck in, we’re having to reprint price labels.”
Paul explained most of his products come from overseas – and now with a 10% baseline tariff on imports from many countries, he said the worst might be yet to come.
“We have to pass on prices to the customers.”
As a smaller market, he explained it’s a balancing act between staying competitive with larger chains and staying open.
“We have to keep the prices down to match them or we won’t have customers,” he said.
One customer at another Asian market, Kimberly Fields, said she’s already noticing a difference when shopping for these kinds of goods
“Prices really went up as far as getting the vegetables,” Fields said. “Extremely went up, so eating plant based wise is not as easy as it is.”
She said her grocery runs have become more intentional – and more expensive.
Back at the market, Paul said he’s trying to hold the line, but he admits even the smallest stores can’t dodge the global economy.
“To stay in business eventually we have to raise the prices,” Paul said.
Paul explained he’s been slow to update prices – partly to keep customers coming back and partly because he’s the only one doing it, but he said if the costs keep rising, he won’t have a choice.
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