If one word has dominated the news in the first half of 2025, it has to be “tariffs.” The proposed, then enacted, paused, then overturned, back-and-forth nature of the tariffs has frustrated many industries, including wine and spirits.
A recent episode of ‘The Daily,’ the news podcast from The New York Times, surely caught the ear of people in the beverage alcohol industry. The episode was titled, “Did a Wine Importer Just Sink Trump’s Trade War?” Like most headlines, the podcast somewhat exaggerates the situation, but the wine importer’s involvement helps show the importance of data in limiting unpredictability when it comes to making decisions. Here’s a quick overview of the situation, and how data can make a difference.
Overview of lawsuit
The United States Court of International Trade blocked many of President Trump’s tariff executive orders on May 28. The court said the president overstepped his use of emergency powers to enact the tariffs, and issued an injunction calling for the government to stop any operations related to the tariff orders.
The ruling came after a number of legal cases brought by small businesses and different states. It doesn’t necessarily mean the process is over, though, as appeals are likely to follow. Other tariffs issued under separate legal authorities will remain in place.
Lead plaintiff
Victor Schwartz told The Daily that he started his wine importing business almost 40 years ago because he wanted to share the delicious wines he found from all over the world with like-minded people in the United States. There are countless people in the wine and spirits industry with similar stories. Schwartz became a de facto representative for many of them by acting as the lead plaintiff on one of the lawsuits against the president.
Schwartz explained how, as an importer, he has to have prices fixed with the state more than a month before he starts selling. He can’t change those prices quickly when a tariff is put in place. “Those tariffs have to be paid upfront. It’s worse than a tax,” Schwartz said. “A tax usually happens after the event. This happens before anything, before we’ve sold a bottle. If I raise a price on a container, I don’t see the revenue from that container for months down the road. We have to sell it all. We have to collect it all.” He called the tariffs a “cash flow killer,” and by sharing these opinions with the lawyers involved in the case, he became the lead plaintiff.
Data’s role
Schwartz points out that one of the drawbacks of the tariffs is the fact that when they were enacted so suddenly, businesses had to make decisions in an unclear situation. That is something organizations never want to do. When they are making decisions, they want as much information as possible available to them so they can plan for any scenario. That’s what analytics can do.
While the tariff situation is a unique hurdle that companies have had to scramble to find solutions for, there are many other curveballs organizations must deal with for which analytics can help them prepare. Schwartz talks about how importing is a heavily regulated business. Analytics can help organizations with the necessary reporting in order to comply with governmental regulations.
The right analytics solution can give wine and spirits companies the upper hand in many aspects of their business operation. From managing inventory to programs to sales performance, data can help inform the decisions that help keep an organization ahead of the competition while also making sure the business is operating efficiently.
As far as The Daily’s clickbait headline, no, it is unlikely a wine importer sank the government’s trade war. Besides the ongoing appeals process, experts suggest the injunction could lead to even more aggressive actions by the president. The tariffs are an unpredictable situation, and unpredictable situations are never good for business. Analytics can help dramatically limit what is unpredictable, and your business can benefit as a result.
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