Home Design Projects Face Challenges As De Minimis Exemption Ends

San Diego area interior designer Rachel Moriarty is known for her artful designs, which include pieces from local fine artists, as well as decorative elements from around the world, which both turn a room into a one-of-a-kind expression of the homeowner’s taste. “I always tell clients that it’s that last layer that glues everything together,” she shares, describing “final styling touches that layer in artistry and character like ceramic bowls, vases, textiles and global one-of-a-kind accessories.”

San Francisco Bay area designer Susie Novack takes a similar approach to that final layer with artisanal candles, tableware and other finishing touches. “We love not only supporting global artists but showcasing various styles and interesting pieces in our clients’ homes,” she says.

These are the type of details that may be inspired by a family’s heritage, a memorable vacation, or the desire to grow a personal collection. And they’re the type of detail — thanks to the elimination of the de minimis exemption — that has just gotten significantly more expensive.

De Minimis Exemption Ending

“An executive order by President Trump took effect today, making it harder, and more costly, for consumers and small businesses to purchase goods directly from foreign suppliers,” senior contributor Joan Verdon wrote in a Forbes.com August 29 article. The change was largely targeting major e-commerce sites like Temu and Shein, but it’s going to hit small design business owners harder. And that, in turn, means it’s going to hit consumers seeking to personalize their homes too and the overseas artisans whose work they’ve been importing to help in this regard.

These recent changes are part of a broader trade environment defined by tariffs, rising costs, and global supply constraints, comments the American Society of Interior Designers’ research director Dawn Haynie. “While the interior design industry has not been directly targeted by these policies, the ripple effects are clear: higher costs for imported goods, supply chain uncertainty, and shifting inflationary expectations all contribute to slower growth in construction and, ultimately, demand for interior design services.” Designers and the retailers and manufacturers who serve them are definitely taking note.

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“The relationships I’ve built allow me to bring in details that reflect the client’s personality in a way that mass market U.S. products can’t always achieve,” comments Dallas-based interior designer Brad Smith. “With the end of the de minimis exemption, even these small imports will now face added tariffs.”

Novack is not only seeing the impact in the products she sources from favorite artisans in Mexico City, she says, but also in domestic companies that manufacture overseas. “We just seemingly recovered from the pandemic supply shortage and price hikes, and now we are dealing with yet another ever changing hurdle,” she laments.

Miami-based interior designer Travis London sources unique pieces from international artisans too, he says, but points out that the impact of the de minimis change goes farther. “Even the larger-scale brands, such as fabric houses like Dedar, Pierre Frey, and Scalamandre, have unique qualities that are not easily replicable in the United States.” That means a living room or primary bedroom redo for a homeowner seeking out the Black Interior Designer, Inc. star can see dramatic price increases on a wide range of home goods. (While a developer can absorb the impact on a large project, an individual homeowner may have a tougher time adjusting.)

Coping Strategies

“I have started exploring U.S.-based alternatives,” Smith reports. “There are many talented makers here, but often their lead times are longer or their price points are higher.”

Novack shares her strategy: “We approach the tariff conversation by presenting all known costs up front and provide a disclaimer that there is a chance that we can get hit with a larger tariff cost as it is issued at the time of shipment. While this is not ideal, vendors are doing their best to keep designers in the know so we can keep the client informed.”

Moriarty is changing her strategy too: “I will most likely lean into sourcing locally using resources like flea markets, thrift and vintage consignment shops, estate sales and inventorying those finds for myself to use across projects. This is one of my favorite ways to source anyway,” she notes.

Seymen Usta, co-founder of Jackson, Wyoming-based Seus Lighting, is also going to have to rethink his sourcing. “The new tariff is certainly going to be more expensive. One pendant may not be a big ticket item, but they are sold in multiples, and the numbers quickly add up,” he notes. Some clients prize that international flavor, the manufacturer observes. “I have talked to a number of vendors, and they are sympathetic but cannot shoulder the expenses. They are small enterprises themselves.” He anticipates that his design-focused clients will negotiate solutions to, as he says, “share the cost or to think about other options.”

Last Words

“Clients are open to domestic options,” Smith says, “but they’ve also voiced disappointment at potentially losing access to that ‘special something’ they’d fallen in love with from abroad. For high-end residential work, where details matter most, this is a meaningful shift."

It’s also a shift for the individual purchasing a single vase from Paris or candelabra from Italy on Etsy, which may now feel like much less of a great deal than it did before the policy change.

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Author’s Note: All interviews for this article were conducted by email between 9/4/2025 and 9/8/2025.