In light of the still-unfolding global tariff situation, HPG is providing the following update to our valued distributor partners. 

With production and fulfillment locations spanning the United States, Canada, and Mexico, HPG is uniquely positioned among hard goods suppliers to continue providing local service with globally-efficient pricing to our thousands of customers across the United States and Canada.

In anticipation of the possibility of rising tariffs in early 2025, HPG invested heavily in additional inventory (both raw materials and finished goods) that has already landed in our warehouses across North America.  The majority of this inventory was produced prior to recent tariff increases, and we are shipping it to customers today at pre-tariff pricing.  We will continue to do so until pre-tariff stocks have been depleted.  With ample inventory on hand, based on forecasted demand, we anticipate this will occur no sooner than June 1,2025.

This safety stock not only allows us the opportunity to see if “cooler heads prevail” at the government level; but, more importantly, it gives HPG the opportunity to seek tariff-mitigating, and tariff-avoiding, cost-saving strategies for our distributors.  The HPG Team is actively engaged on this front, and there will be no price increases until current pre-tariff inventories are exhausted, and we have likewise exhausted any-and-all cost mitigation opportunities. 

In the meantime, there are some special situations (such as orders placed with an HPG Canadian subsidiary, for shipment to the United States) that may trigger additional tariffs at the time of border crossing.  In such situations, we are proactively working with our customers to implement tariff-efficient strategies (such as re-routing the order to an HPG USA subsidiary), that can provide a suitable replacement item at a non-tariff-impacted price.  

Additionally, overseas-direct orders are another special situation that will be more directly impacted by real-time tariff changes.  Specifically, in the case of overseas orders, HPG is proceeding as follows:

• Overseas orders are quoted based on tariff and duty rates in effect at the time of quotation
• For any overseas orders that were shipped from origin port prior to the implementation of new tariffs, there will be no change in pricing
• In the event of a new tariff, for any overseas orders that have been placed but are not yet in production, HPG will notify the customer of the net impact of the tariff (with no additional markup), and the customer may cancel the order at their discretion
• In the event of a new tariff, for any overseas orders that are either in-process or complete but not shipped from the origin port, HPG will notify the customer of the net impact of the tariff (with no additional markup), which will be added to the final invoice price
• In the event of a tariff reduction, for any overseas orders that are not already in transit (and have not yet triggered tariffs), HPG will reduce the final invoice price by the net amount of tariff savings

If history has taught us anything, it is that, eventually, calmer heads do prevail.  Until then, you can continue to count on HPG to be your stable, long-term-focused partner for all of your hard goods needs.

Thank you, 

Chris Anderson
CEO, HPG