How Proposed Tariffs Might Affect the Massage Therapy Profession

Tariffs have been a hot topic as of late, and they can influence all aspects of your life, including your massage practice. Let’s discuss how the proposed tariffs might affect the massage therapy profession and what steps you can take to be prepared for any potential impact.

What are Tariffs?

A tariff is a tax imposed on imported goods, typically paid by the importing business to its home country's government. While importers pay the tariff, the added cost often gets passed on to consumers through higher prices. With new tariff proposals in the news, it’s helpful to understand how they could impact your practice.

Potential Effect of Tariffs on Massage Therapists

Within the massage therapy profession, a main concern is ensuring that massage products remain accessible so that you can best care for your clients and your practice. Tariffs can and often do lead to uncertainty and volatility regarding the cost and availability of these necessary products.

A major, potential, impact of tariffs is increased costs for massage therapy products, which could then lead to increased costs for massage therapy clients. Currently, however, both prices and consumer confidence appear to be holding steady, though that could change in upcoming months.

Minimizing the Impact of Tariffs

While the effect of these tariffs remains to be seen, there are some things you can do to help decrease any potential negative effects:

• Focus on Your Budget
  With the potential for higher product costs, it may be necessary to reorganize your budget. Evaluating your budget and allocating funds so that you are prepared for any uncertainties can be an important step to minimize the effect of tariffs on your practice.
  
  
• Resource Products
  Sourcing a product domestically or finding the product in a country that has a lower tariff rate can help minimize the impact of tariffs. However, these options are not always available for necessary products.
  
  
• Plan Ahead
  Buying products in bulk and being aware of how these tariffs are affecting you and your consumers can help you plan for the future, even if it is uncertain.

The true effects of tariffs on the massage therapy industry are expected to become clearer over the next few months. AMTA remains committed to supporting massage therapists across the country and will continue to keep you informed as the situation develops.

Share Your Experience

Are you a massage therapist or a manufacturer of massage therapy products who has been affected by tariffs? We encourage you to share your experiences with us at communications@amtamassage.org.