Local beauty supply store owner speaks on impacts of tariffs

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) – Businesses across the country are feeling the effects of tariffs against China.

President Donald Trump imposed 145% tariffs on the country, causing a 125% retaliatory rate against the U.S.

The hikes are now hitting small businesses the hardest.

Action News 5 spoke with one Memphis small business owner who says she hopes to retain her customers during these tough economic times.

At first glance, Pink Noire Beauty Supply & Cosmetics off Avalon Street is simply a beauty supply store.

But as founder and CEO Chasity Monroe explains, the store is much more than that.

She calls it a safe space for Black women that is now facing major financial challenges, all due to ongoing international trade wars.

The building is filled with pink, hair care products and makeup.

Chasity Monroe says Pink Noire is a hub for Black women in her community.

“It’s like a one-stop shop,” Monroe said. You’re not just getting hair care. You might get skin care, you might get makeup, you might get a wax… you know, all of these things are kind of housed here, and some of the products just may not be mainstream.”

She tells Action News 5, that’s part of the reason why she opened shop three years ago, working to meet a need she saw in her community at a critical time.

“I also felt like the existing beauty supply experience was very transactional, so I wanted it to be something where it’s a shopable experience, a joy to shop,” she said. “And somewhere to convene for community.”

Monroe has faced a number of challenges as the only Black-woman-owned beauty supply retail store in the city.

Now, tariffs are having major impacts on her business.

“Starting probably in January, we’ve seen three to four price increases across the board on our brands,” she said.

Monroe says most brands in the beauty supply space come from China (or other Asian nations), and when the tariffs hit, the prices hit her business even harder.

“As a small business, having the cash flow to try to beat the tariffs… it’s difficult because we’re very lean,” she said. “We’re ordering as the volume comes, whereas a lot of other retailers, even the [larger] beauty supply stores, they have an influx of inventory. So, they may be able to hold off a little bit on increasing their prices due to the tariffs, because they have that extra inventory.”

She’s tried to absorb as much of the costs as she can, but she says, “the reality is, as a small business, some of that has to be passed to the consumer.”

And although costs have gone up, Monroe says she’s looking for domestic alternatives, even though they’re typically costly.

She also has concerns about the long-term impacts these tariffs will have on local communities and Black businesses.

“It’s really not about beauty,” Monroe said. It’s about who we are as community pillars, what we continue to do in that aspect, and being that kind of beacon of light for a lot of young Black people to say, ‘Oh wait, if she can do that, I can do that, too.’”

Pink Noire Beauty Supply & Cosmetics is located at 152 North Avalon Street in Memphis.

Click here to sign up for our newsletter!

Click here to report a spelling or grammar error. Please include the headline.

Copyright 2025 WMC. All rights reserved.