What happened on May 7
On May 7, 2026, the U.S. Court of International Trade ruled that Proclamation 11012 — the legal vehicle for Trump's flat 10% Section 122 emergency tariff — exceeded executive authority. The court invalidated the proclamation. Customs and Border Protection, citing pending appeals, has continued to collect duties at the full rate.
The result: a textbook legal limbo. Importers are paying 10% on apparel today. They may or may not get refunded later. Brand directors are getting forwarded the ruling at 9 AM and being asked by their CFO at 9:15 AM what to do.
Here is what we are telling our clients.
The four moves smart brands are making
One. Stop treating the 10% rate as the worst case. Glossy reported last week that brands were "scrambling" — and that scrambling is reactive. If Section 122 falls and the underlying CTPA framework reasserts itself, Colombia returns to its long-standing preferential treatment under yarn-forward rules. China stays at its current 41.5 to 61% effective rate. The relative gap widens, not narrows.
Two. Diversify by geography, not just by factory. Oxford Industries publicly disclosed reducing China sourcing from 40% to 15% in nine months. They did not move to one country — they moved to a portfolio. The brands quietly winning Q2 are doing the same.
Three. Lock in capacity before Q4. McKinsey's 2026 sourcing report shows a 35% cost spike in apparel and 71% of executives planning price increases over the next twelve months. Capacity for fall delivery is already tightening across the Western Hemisphere.
Four. Audit your tech packs. The brands who lose this cycle are the ones still operating with PDF tech packs from 2022. Manufacturers, including us, prioritize incoming orders that arrive with clean digital tech packs. Spend a week here. It compounds.
The Colombia math, side by side
We pulled the numbers that matter for a brand running a 1,000-unit cut-and-sew swim or athleisure order:
| Origin | Effective tariff Q2 2026 | Landed cost premium vs Colombia | Lead time air freight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colombia | 10% (Section 122) / preferential under CTPA review | — | 5 to 7 days |
| Mexico | 10% (USMCA gaps) | +3-8% (USMCA carve-outs) | 3 to 5 days |
| Vietnam | 10% currently, volatility risk | +12-15% | 18 to 25 days |
| China | 41.5-61% effective | +45-55% | 25 to 35 days |
What we are doing inside Tulum
We are not going to pretend the tariff is good news. It compresses margin for everyone. But we are sitting inside the Antioquia textile cluster with 233,000 people, a 70% hydroelectric grid, a curated partner network for digital print and sublimation, and a planning calendar that is already accepting fall 2026 orders.
If you have a tech pack and a delivery deadline, we can give you a costed quote in 48 hours and a sample in 14 days. That is the only honest answer to a moving tariff floor: replace volatility with cadence.