Atlanta, Georgia \u2014 Pillows filled and sealed for a good night’s sleep at the Atlanta warehouse of home bedding company Standard Fiber are one of many things giving its CEO, Chad Altbaier, nightmares.<\/p>\n
“Planning is practically impossible,” Altbaier told CBS News. “Probably the most challenging time of my career.”\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nevada-based Standard Fiber is the middleman between Chinese producers of sheets, towels and curtains \u2014 and American buyers such as Walmart and Target.<\/p>\n
“We’re already having customers that are reducing their order quantities because they’re concerned about the higher price points, and a consumer responding to that by buying less,” Altbaier said. <\/p>\n
When U.S. tariffs on China reached triple digits<\/a> earlier this year, retailers canceled their orders. Now, with the tariffs at 30%<\/a>, some of those retailers want goods from China shipped immediately. That temporary 90-day deal, reached in mid-May, is set to run through mid-August. In June, both nations announced that they had reached a tentative agreement<\/a> on a more permanent trade deal, although it has not yet been finalized.\u00a0<\/p>\n “You can’t walk into a Walmart or a Target or a Costco or a Home Goods and have nothing to sell,” Altbaier said. “The question really is how much product is going to be there and at what price point.”<\/p>\n