Gabe Hagen, co-founder and CEO of Brick Road Coffee and a participant in Small Businesses Against Tariffs, was profiled in Arizona’s Copper Courier for his vocal opposition to the tariff regime:
While the up and coming roastery was closed for construction, Hagen watched anxiously as Trump unveiled the new tariff policies.
“We’re just sitting here watching a train barrel towards us,” Hagen said.
Once he began buying new equipment, like espresso machines that are often made by Italian manufacturers, he noticed they were too costly under Trump’s tariff regime. Hagen began calling around for the equipment he wanted domestically to see if companies had the machines he needed. Ultimately, he ended up downsizing a lot of equipment in order to save money and ensure he could still follow his dreams of opening the roastery.
The economic disarray is what prompted Hagen to join the Small Businesses Against Tariffs initiative in February, a new campaign highlighting business owners from across the country who have been impacted by tariffs.
“When you can get people that are in their community to be able to be those messengers and help educate people [about] our realities, that’s really a powerful tool, and so I wanted to do that,” Hagen said. “I wanted to feel like I’m creating something that can be positive [and] hopefully help other business owners that may not have the privilege to speak out.”