An Experiment by American Small Business Owners Reveals Consumer Willingness to Pay High Prices for "Made in USA" Products: Results That Give Food for Thought

Afina Showerhead Filter founder Ramon van Meer tested if consumers are willing to pay more for products "Made in USA" amid US-China trade tensions. He sold two identical products on his website, one priced at $129 made in China and the other at $239 made in the USA. The results showed that 584 customers opted for the China-made version, while no one purchased the USA-made version, indicating that consumers are not willing to pay extra to support American manufacturing. Van Meer plans to shift production to other Asian countries to cut costs.

Experiment Design: Two Products, One Question

Ramon van Meer is the founder of Afina, a company that specializes in selling filtered showerheads. Amid rising US-China trade tensions, with the US imposing tariffs up to 145% on Chinese imports, van Meer decided to test a long-heard but unverified claim: Are consumers really willing to pay a higher price for "Made in USA"?

He designed a simple yet persuasive experiment: On Afina's website, he simultaneously listed two filtered showerheads that were identical in appearance and function. One was made in China, priced at $129; the other was made in the USA, priced at $239. This price difference reflects the actual production cost gap—van Meer stated that the cost of moving production back to the US is three times that of China.

Cost and Supply Chain Challenges

To manufacture the American version of the product, van Meer had to find four to six different US suppliers, each responsible for different parts and assembly processes. He noted that such a supply chain is not only complex but also much more expensive and inefficient than working with a single supplier in China.

Despite the cost of US manufacturing being much higher than paying tariffs, van Meer decided to proceed with the test. He emphasized, "I don't want to conduct surveys, nor do I want to look at cart addition rates. I just want to see actual purchasing behavior because when people really have to spend money, that's the real data."

Customer Reaction: Data Speaks

After several days of the experiment, the Afina website attracted over 25,000 visitors. The results showed that 584 customers purchased the China-made version priced at $129, while the US-made version priced at $239 had zero sales.

In a subsequent blog post, van Meer wrote, "We originally believed customers would support American workers with their money. But when faced with a real choice—not a survey, not a comment section—they didn't." He described the result as "eye-opening."

Moreover, the "add to cart" rate for the US-made version was less than 1%. This further indicated that even among customers browsing the product, almost no one was interested in the higher-priced US-made version.

Sales Results and Follow-up Strategy

The results of this experiment have practical implications for van Meer. He is currently attempting to shift production from China to other Asian countries with lower tariffs. He stated, "Staying in China is no longer viable, even if both sides reach an agreement, we can't predict what will happen in the future." As for whether future tariff costs will be passed on to consumers, he said it has not been decided yet, but "we might conduct another test."

Afina currently has enough inventory in US warehouses to sell through August. If the supply chain transition is not completed by then, the company will have to face the pressure of tariff costs.

Background: Tariff Policy and the Current State of Manufacturing

Van Meer's experiment took place against the backdrop of the US imposing high tariffs on Chinese goods. According to reports, US tariffs on Chinese imports can reach as high as 145%. These policies aim to encourage domestic manufacturing and reduce reliance on China. However, many US manufacturers point out that even products labeled "Made in USA" actually still rely on global supply chains, including packaging materials and components.

Additionally, many small businesses and consumers have begun to feel the price pressure brought by tariffs. Some parents have turned to second-hand platforms to buy baby products, indicating that consumer sensitivity to prices is rising.

References

• A business owner tested if customers would pay more for American-made. The results were 'sobering.'
• U.S. tariffs could raise cost of baby products up to $1,000 a year
• US shoppers told to brace for ‘shared sacrifice’ amid the wait for Trump trade deals while Europeans shun ‘Made in America’
• Nearly 90% of Americans expect tariffs to raise prices, poll finds
• The Liberation Tariffs: Worse Than an Oil Embargo?