We Did It! U.S. Orders Are Officially Tariff-Free!

We have some very good news for our friends across the border: All orders to the United States are now officially tariff-free! 

After months of navigating the new illegal trade rules and sorting through endless legal complications, we finally found a solution that keeps things affordable, compliant, and tariff-free for Americans. That means you can keep shopping your favourite custom, handmade pieces without worrying about surprise costs or extra fees at checkout! (It also means that you don’t have to give more money to the current administration, which is also a win for everyone. 😉)

What’s Going On With the US Tariffs

Earlier this year, the U.S. government introduced new tariffs on Canadian goods, including handmade garments like ours. Normally, all orders under $800 would be tariff-free, but the US government not only upped the tariffs to 35%, but applied them to all orders across the board. 

While we’ve always been entirely handmade in Canada, we’ve never bothered to legally prove it because most of our orders were under $800 and had been tariff-exempt. With the removal of the de minimis exemption it meant that all our US clients would suddenly have to pay an extra 35%. So we immediately took action to prove CUSMA compliance.

CUSMA (that’s the Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement) is the trade deal that allows products made in Canada to cross the border duty-free. It’s essentially supposed to be an incentive to make things locally. We were thrilled to automatically be in compliance because it meant our US customers wouldn’t have to pay those new tariffs.

But then, things got complicated. Even though our products are legally tariff-free, the U.S. President issued an executive order saying that Postal Services (which are government organizations, unlike private carrier services like FedEx, etc.)  couldn’t process CUSMA paperwork. Which, to be clear, is not legal. So, even though we did everything right, our shipments sent through Canada Post couldn’t be exempted from tariffs.

We checked into other mail services, but the escalated shipping cost was more than the cost of tariffs. So we suddenly had no solution. We had told our American customers that we were tariff-free, but then suddenly had to change our tune, and we know how frustrating that was for many of you. We felt it too, especially as a small, handmade business trying to do the right thing by our community.

How We Fixed It (and Why It’s Great News)

We didn’t stop there. We continued to search for an alternative shipping method that would enable us to utilize our CUSMA certification properly. After a lot of testing and research, our awesome shop manager finally found a fantastic solution: a service called Chit Chats.

Chit Chats partners with carriers that can process CUSMA paperwork correctly, which means every order we send to the U.S. now ships tariff-free. Just like it should! 

Even better? We’re able to do this without increasing shipping costs. With Chit Chats, we get all the compliance benefits and keep our rates accessible. This is a huge win for everyone, and a big sigh of relief for our whole team.

What This Means For Our U.S. Customers 🇺🇸

Here’s how this change affects your orders, depending on when you placed them:

• If your order has already been delivered and you paid a tariff:
  We can’t refund tariffs that have already been paid, but we’re giving you a 15% coupon code toward your next order as a thank-you for your patience and support.
  

• If your order had a shipping label made through Canada Post but has not yet been picked up (due to the strike):
  We’re refunding the tariff and re-shipping your order through Chit Chats, so there will be no tariff or delay when it arrives.
  

• If you placed an order and paid a tariff, but we haven’t shipped it yet:
  Your order will go out through Chit Chats, and we will be refunding the tariff
  

• If you’re ordering after Thursday:
   You won’t see any tariff charges at checkout. It’s all handled automatically now! All US orders are tariff-free!
  

We’re so grateful to everyone who has stuck with us through this confusing process. Your support means everything, and we’re thrilled to finally have a smooth, tariff-free system in place for you.

For Our Canadian Customers 🇨🇦

We haven’t forgotten about you! Because one crisis at a time isn't enough fun…Here’s the latest on the Canada Post strike:

• If your order is already in the mail: We’re really sorry, but there may be a delay. There’s nothing we can do to retrieve things after they’ve been shipped. Keep checking the Canada Post website for updates on the strike.
  

• If your order is placed and hasn’t shipped yet: Let us know if you’d like to switch to Chit Chats. We can make that change for you so there’s no delay.

• If you place an order soon: Our current production time is 4- 6 weeks, so the strike will hopefully be resolved by the time it’s ready. But if it’s not, we’ll give you the option to ship through Chit Chats.
  

• If your order is ready to ship: It can go out right away if you choose Chit Chats shipping.
  

We appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding as we continue to navigate this ever-changing world together.

Made With Care, Right Here in Montréal

Normally, making everything in-house puts us at a disadvantage compared to larger companies that outsource production. Because every garment is handmade in our Montréal studio by real people earning fair wages, our costs are naturally higher, and our profit margins are smaller. We’ve always believed it was worth it to keep things ethical and sustainable, even when it meant operating on tighter margins. 

But in this instance, we’re seeing a reward for doing things the right way. By being CUSMA-compliant and shipping through Chit Chats, our in-house production means we can offer tariff-free orders to our U.S. customers. A well-deserved win for slow fashion and small-batch makers like us.

Thank You for Staying With Us

We’re endlessly grateful for the patience, understanding, and love you’ve shown while we sorted this out. It’s not easy being a small, ethical brand in a world of complicated policies, but your continued support makes it all worth it.

So here’s to good news, fair pricing, and smoother shipping ahead. Your custom, gender-affirming garments are on the way. Tariff-free and made with love from Montréal.