New York —
Shirley Modlin started her manufacturing business 20 years ago in her garage with her husband. Now, she fears the company won’t survive.
Modlin’s tiny company based in Powhatan, Virginia, faces major delays on components and price hikes of up to 400% that she blames on tariffs. She is struggling to pass those costs on to clients and has fallen 90 days behind on payments to vendors.
“Everything is delayed or high-priced. The customer is screaming. It’s killing us,” Modlin, owner of 3D Design and Manufacturing, told CNN in a phone interview.
Mom-and-pop shops are under increasing pressure from a confluence of factors: tariffs, high interest rates, expensive health insurance and now surging energy costs.
