Vermont stainless‑bottle maker says tariffs have doubled import costs, threatens cash flow

Ravi Ringer, co‑owner of Bivou in Richmond, told a joint hearing of the House Commerce and Economic Development Committee and the Senate Economic, General and Housing Committee on April 9 that recent tariff actions have dramatically increased his company’s cost of goods and put near‑term survival at risk.

Ringer said Bivou, which employs eight people and makes a stainless steel water bottle designed to fit in tube bike cages, sources virtually all of its product from a single province in China. “We are the first designers, developers of a stainless steel bottle that fits in tube bike cages,” he said. He added that “95% of the world's stainless steel bottles…are made in 1 province in China.”

The company is facing higher duty bills and an acute cash‑flow squeeze, Ringer said. He told lawmakers his firm paid about $40,000 in duties on its first full 40‑foot container and that a forthcoming purchase order would cost about $209,000 — figures he presented as examples of the immediate financing pressure on a roughly $2,000,000 business that has been doubling annually. “We just don't have cash reserves,” Ringer said. He warned that small businesses “are gonna take a massive margin hit” and that “most of these small businesses…are not gonna survive if things don't change.”

Ringer described two types of near‑term responses: private coping strategies and state support. On the private side, he has paused inbound shipments and is exploring bonded warehouses — facilities that let goods enter the U.S. without paying duty until the product is withdrawn for sale — as a way to defer immediate cash outflow. On the policy side, he urged “grants, education or infrastructure to focus on U.S. manufacturing,” and asked the legislature to consider targeted lending or grant programs to help small manufacturers cover upfront tooling or mold costs (he cited a $25,000 mold cost in China as a manufacturing‑setup example).

Ringer also described market consequences: slowed orders from large Canadian retailers such as Mountain Equipment Co‑op (MEC), questions from distributors in Europe and Japan, and the risk that international accounts will “not want to do business with the U.S.” because of policy volatility. He said his wholesale price points (around $40 retail typical) give the firm little room to absorb higher tariffs without passing costs to consumers.

Ringer and several committee members discussed options including local lending tools and state programs; he said a line of credit that had been available to the firm disappeared three weeks earlier. He asked legislators to prioritize cash‑flow support for small manufacturers while longer‑term supply‑chain shifts are considered.

Ringer closed by urging Vermonters to “support a local business” and stressed the community value of small manufacturers.

For readers: Ringer’s testimony was part of a multi‑hour hearing on the economic impacts of new tariffs and cross‑border retaliatory measures.