Ever since President Donald Trump was declared the winner of the 2024 election, the internet has been a little less concerned with contrast makeup theory and a little more fixated on recession indicators in fashion. Specifically, the universal tariffs on imported goods Trump touted as a major agenda for a second term in office; signed into policy on March 3; amplified into sweeping taxes on China, the European Union, and more, announced on April 2; and finally put on a 90-day pause (with some exceptions) on April 9.
Trump's proposed tariffs on the campaign trail—between 10 and 20 percent for all imports and up to 60 percent for goods from China—first bubbled up without much fanfare. But in the final days before the election and the immediate aftermath, alarm bells started ringing all across the internet, from panicked fashion obsessives and corner office CEOS to everyday, average citizens. By the time the April 2 "Liberation Day" tariffs arrived, economic experts warned CNBC they would have "horrendous" effects on global trade—trickling all the way down to everyday shopping. Sure enough, the stock market immediately suffered. And businesses—especially small, women-led companies—worried they would pay the policy's true cost.
