One year into the U.S. levies, experts discuss costs, timelines, detours and transparency
When sweeping U.S. tariffs took hold in the spring of 2025, the event industry grappled with the uncertainty of how long they would last, which materials and services would be impacted most, and who would ultimately foot the bill for the extra costs. A year later, the taxes, and the volatility, persist. Quote windows have shrunken astronomically, and budgets aren’t budging, even as the price of production materials continues to rise.
According to the industry experts we spoke with, however, “tariffs” is just the headline of a much more complicated, and chaotic, story. Soaring fuel costs, global supply chain instability, the conflict in the Middle East and policies that change in the blink of an eye are all at play. And this perfect storm has caused significant price increases, and shortages, of aluminum, lumber, LEDs, electronics, swag items, imported equipment and custom scenic elements.
Amid the constantly churning waters, the event profs who are navigating these conditions best are adapting their production cycles and partnerships, building buffers around timelines and resources, beefing up their contingencies and making more sustainable choices.
For a better look at what the latest challenges are, and how the event industry is responding, we tapped a group of agency executives for their expertise.
ADAPTABILITY AS A SUPER POWER
Prices, availability of materials and timelines can change in an instant in today’s climate, and that makes adaptability critical. From relying more on modular builds, to choosing rentals over owned materials, to adding iron-clad contingencies into every program, to sourcing local vendors where needed, the pros say it’s essential to insert flexibility into the planning process from the get-go.
“We’ve found a lot of cost efficiencies in designing more modular infrastructures,” says Lisa Chu, co-founder and managing partner at Team Epiphany. “We designed them early on this year, and just move them along to different festivals, activations and cultural moments. And it’s still very customized to each event, but the mechanics behind it are the same, so that’s a great way to save and be more mindful of the client’s dollar.”
Being flexible also means crafting more than one set of contingency plans, and avoiding making assumptions based on how the event industry operated prior to the tariffs and war in Iran.
“At the moment, we’ve got lots of clients putting things on pause in the Middle East, and we’re making sure that everybody is safe and comfortable and scenario-planning,” says Edward Scott, global coo at George P. Johnson. “Is this a short skirmish? Is it a long skirmish? We obviously don’t know, but what we can do is help clients and our teams work through three to four different scenarios, come up with options, and give them all the information that we have so they can make an informed decision.”
PRICING & QUOTE WINDOWS
Another crucial factor is recognizing that the unpredictability of U.S. tariffs itself inherently increases prices. And event profs have to be prepared for the fallout.
“What the tariffs do is, whether they’re imposed or not, they force a preemptive price increase that, in most cases, doesn’t go back down,” says Bryan Callaghan, svp-business development at Specialized Marketing Experiences. “The biggest issue is that when we submit an estimate to a client, the expectation is that it will be good for at least a few weeks, minimum, when in reality, material prices can shift daily based on tariff changes. That uncertainty forces higher prices.”
And that combination of rising costs and shorter quote windows is requiring teams to work at a breakneck pace that, ultimately, can’t be sustained.
“We’re now holding shipping estimates for three days, when it should be about a month, and holding equipment costs for 15 days, where it used to be about a year,” says Austin Johnston, founder and ceo at AKJOHNSTON Group. “We’re talking about [scenarios where] goods have left a port, and then more than 90% through the journey, the cost of those goods has now changed… You cannot roll out a business strategy with that much whiplash.”
And when it comes to major tentpole events like Cannes Lions, CES and Coachella, the timeframe in which event organizers have to select and ship furniture and specialty décor is not only shortened, but far more competitive than it used to be. What’s more, install teams are in high demand during these periods.
“Furniture and décor inventory has tightened during major event seasons,” says Isabella Rodriguez, co-founder at Super Great Fantastic. “You can still get beautiful pieces, but availability windows are smaller, and pricing is much more aggressive than it was a few years ago.”
TARIFFS FAST FACTS:
• In February, the Supreme Court ruled that a large chunk of tariffs imposed by the U.S. in 2025 were unconstitutional, and required that roughly $160 billion be refunded, plus billions more in interest. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection began the reimbursement process in May, and payments have started reaching businesses.
• Effective April 6, the U.S. raised tariffs on steel, aluminum and copper by 50 percent. A few weeks later, the U.S. Commerce Department filed to allow steel and aluminum producers in Canada and Mexico, only, to reduce their rates from 50 to 25 percent—if they formally commit to building or expanding their production facilities in the U.S.
• “Import washing,” the exercise of routing goods made in a high-tariff country through a lower-tariff country so that they enter the U.S. under a cheaper rate, has been on the rise since the U.S. levies were imposed. This “country-of-origin misrepresentation” practice is now treated as potential criminal fraud.
PARTNERSHIPS & RADICAL TRANSPARENCY
A theme that was brought up over and over among the experts was the need for open and honest conversations among suppliers, vendors, agencies and brands. Radical transparency and setting expectations at this stage in the tariffs game, they say, is non-negotiable.
The strongest vendor-client relationships right now are the ones in which all parties acknowledge that costs and the availability of materials are changing in real time. It also pays for brands to onboard agencies as early as possible in the planning process to design around constraints rather than absorb costs during the execution phase. As Scott puts it, “bad news doesn’t get better with time.”
“Radical transparency with your teams and with your clients is just critical,” he says. “You have to recognize that you can plan for it all, and then something can change pretty quickly on the global stage that is going to impact it.”
And according to Johnston, it may be wise to request that vendors highlight costs impacted by tariffs to ensure there aren’t any unwelcome surprises. “It’s worth asking any vendor what items would be affected by tariffs and if they can call that line item out,” he says. “I would love to see a world in which we have tariff-affected line items highlighted to the tune of X percent… at least everyone feels informed and empowered.”
The execs also pointed to the fact that hiring local and regional vendors may be unavoidable in some cases, but that reliance on existing trusted networks is paramount, even if it means paying more. In George P. Johnson’s case, Scott explains, some of the agency’s longtime vendor partners were able to pre-purchase materials ahead of certain tariffs being announced, or found the right timeframe in which to acquire those items.
As Rodriguez puts it: “Protect your vendor relationships at all costs. Good vendors are carrying an incredible amount of stress right now between labor shortages, rising material costs and constantly shifting import costs. The teams that communicate clearly, pay on time and operate collaboratively are the ones who will continue getting solutions when things get difficult.”
For Callaghan, it’s not only about preserving relationships, but maintaining the integrity of the work. “We don’t go to low-cost providers,” he says. “We go to providers that are certain they can get the material and the input in the timeframe that our client needs. So we haven’t gone elsewhere because we have these trusted partners.”
PURPOSE OVER EXCESS
According to the experts, the tariffs and other socio-economic factors affecting the industry could be a blessing in disguise from a sustainability perspective as event organizers make more intentional decisions about renting versus owning equipment, the use of modular and reusable structures, and how they approach branded giveaways.
On the swag and custom merch side of the biz, for instance, some agencies are moving away from high-volume, low-value items in favor of more elevated and experiential options that provide a greater impact, with less supply chain disruption.
“We’ve been encouraging clients to rethink what ‘swag’ means altogether,” says Rodriguez. “Instead of producing large quantities of lower-quality giveaway items that are manufactured overseas, we’re seeing much stronger engagement from more intentional gifting. Things like spa packages, wellness experiences, travel credits and locally sourced items focus on the quality of the gift versus the quantity of swag being given, which resonates far more with guests anyway.”
KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON
After a year’s worth of trying to keep up with yo-yoing policies, many industry insiders have now accepted that the global economy is likely to be in turmoil for some time. And considering that the event business is already challenging in its own right, Scott advises fellow marketers to “have patience, and give yourself grace.”
In that same vein, experts say that as regulations continue to shift on a dime, reacting to every fluctuation isn’t worth the energy.
“My advice is, don’t freak out about the policy changes because there’s so much back and forth on it,” Chu says. “Wait for the chips to fall a little bit, be patient, and then work it out.”
