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  • 80/20 of Ecom - Nike’s $1B Tariff Playbook, Trump’s Vietnam Deal, and Amazon’s FBA Clawbacks 7/4/2025

80/20 of Ecom - Nike’s $1B Tariff Playbook, Trump’s Vietnam Deal, and Amazon’s FBA Clawbacks 7/4/2025

Nike just gave sellers a 4-step blueprint to survive tariffs. Vietnam hits 20%. Amazon’s FBA “found inventory” might actually cost you.

Hey guys,

In this week's 8020 of E commerce newsletter July 4th.

Nike got hit with a one billion dollar tariff bill. Here's their four step plan to mitigate tariffs and what E Comm sellers can take away from it. 

Trump Strikes a Deal with Vietnam tariffs set at 20% how do we move forward from this? 

What's worse than lost FBA inventory when Amazon finds it? For sellers who think that when Amazon finds lost FBA inventory is a good thing, they're in for a rude awakening. Find out this and more in this week's edition of the 80/20 of E commerce. 

This week, as the sourcing situation stabilizes, it looks like China's tariff is going to be at 55%, Vietnam is at 20% and others are being discussed.

As I mentioned earlier in the week, sellers need to know if they've been sitting on the fence, they need to decide whether they are in or out whether to keep going with China to find an alternate sourcing strategy like the big retailers are doing Nike and Ralph Lauren Polo, or to quit this cold turkey. 

This year, Ecom is still a lucrative opportunity, but things are more challenging than before. If you need help on the sourcing side, there's a couple of ways I can help via my sourcing partners in China, Vietnam, Mexico, India and more

If you're interested in getting help, please fill out the sourcing request form below.

Now let's get into the 80/20 of Ecommerce. 

  • Nike adjusts supply chain and prices to absorb $1B tariff burden

  • The Trump–Vietnam Accord: Trade Liberalization and a New Direction in U.S. Economic Policy

  • Why Finding Lost FBA Inventory Might Hurt Your Bottom Line

Tariffs are impacting all businesses, not just Ecommerce sellers. Even the multinational sports conglomerate Nike is getting hit with a billion dollar tariff bill.

Here's Nike's four step plan to mitigate the tariffs and what you can take away from it.

  1.  Diversify from China - Currently they're sourcing 16% of their products from China. They want to move this down to single digits.

  2. They're negotiating with suppliers to get lower costs -  In corporate speak, the company is working with suppliers and partners to mitigate the structural cost increase of tariffs to minimize the impact on consumers. What that really means is they're going to ask their suppliers to help share the burden, and absorb the cost. Also, they need to streamline their logistics and optimize profitability in that respect.

  3. Surgical price increases - They're going to selectively increase their prices to protect margins.

  4. Corporate cost reduction - This means that they're going to cut staff, salary and compensation packages for the company's overall profitability. Good.

All four of these levers can be pulled if you're an E Commerce seller

Takeaway is to learn from Nike and do this. Take away these four steps to help you survive the tariffs going into the Q4 of 2025.

If you like to immediately take action and increase your profitability, I'm excited to share that we have a 14-day tariff profitability challenge.

Over the course of 14 days, each day you will get a strategic email that you can take and implement into your business to get immediate savings and profitability going into Q4.

U.S. and Vietnam trade deals reached the tariff instead of 20% on Vietnam imports.  Vietnam in reciprocal agreement has agreed to eliminate U.S. import tariffs to 0%. 

Some companies are eyeing the Vietnam marketplace right now because of the zero tariff opportunity. If you are sourcing from China, consider sourcing from Vietnam with the 20% tariff. 

Be aware, however, that Vietnamese suppliers will expect higher MOQs. You may expect higher pricing as well as limited product availability, so you have to take in the overall picture when making a decision.

If you would like help sourcing from Vietnam and seeing if your product will be a good fit, please fill out this sourcing request form to see if I can connect you. 

Note: I recommend Vietnam for larger and more experienced sellers, not beginners.

What's worse than Lost Amazon FBA Inventory when Amazon finds it? 

Amazon recently changed its reimbursement policy for lost FBA inventory and this is causing problems for sellers. 

Sellers are reporting right now when Amazon finds previously lost inventory, it can result in negative adjustments or claw backs. This has led to a ton of frustration and confusion among the selling community, so sellers are recommended to review their reimbursement claims and documentation.

Take away from Amazon sellers: 

  • First off, ensure you have proper documentation to support your inventory value. 

  • Second, review your FBA reimbursement claims detail. Consider using third party services like Getida and we have a special link below if you haven't already used them before.

📌 In Case You Missed It


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🎯 Consulting – Get tailored strategies for Amazon Japan, sourcing, or profitability.
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📩 Contact me: gary [at] 8020sourcing.com

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