Donald Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs reshaped global cost structures overnight. But, unlike more localized past tariffs, the ripple effects of something on this scale made clear next steps difficult for fashion leaders to identify, let alone take.

Despite a 90-day pause being put into effect, brands are still left facing the difficult question: are we equipped to deal with margin mayhem and supply chain shake-ups, if they come back? 

Here’s how retailers can leverage AI to build long-term business resilience and limit tariff turmoil..

Adjust inventory strategies

Tariffs don’t just affect costs, they reshape consumer behavior and retailers need inventory strategies to not only adjust, but to continue to be adjustable.

Flexible inventory strategies have to be non-negotiable.

Where companies are based, where they source materials from, and where they manufacture their goods, all contribute to the impact that tariffs have on their margins. But how many of these are set in stone, are seen as too risky to change or are reliant on the very same confidence-based intuition that’s just been blindsided?

Here’s where AI comes in.

At autone, we help retailers by ingesting global trade data, supplier pricing trends, and historical tariff shifts to model a bulletproof disruption scenario. If tariffs increase on specific raw materials or finished goods, our system immediately stress-tests different sourcing and production strategies. Brands get a dynamic playbook, not just a static dashboard, allowing them to pivot from one supplier to another, or adjust order volumes before competitors even react.

So, while uncertainty remains, the ability to shift manufacturing to a 10% territory (the current base rate during the 90-day pause) from China (still in triple-digits) is huge. And autone’s technology can give you the insight and the confidence to identify and execute the decision you need to make, exactly when you need to make it.

Navigating trade uncertainties, turning defense to offense

In times of uncertainty, most brands play defense. They cut costs, slow orders, and wait for clarity. But the best brands, the ones that survive and thrive, do the opposite. They use uncertainty as a competitive advantage, a moment to move faster while everyone else hesitates. And AI unlocks this possibility.

Think of it this way: every disruption in trade policy creates hidden opportunities. A sudden tariff increase on European leather could cripple a brand relying on Italian tanneries, or it could be the catalyst for discovering an emerging supplier in Portugal that’s just as good but 20% cheaper. AI doesn’t just track changes in costs; it predicts their downstream effects, modeling every scenario so that brands don’t just react, they get ahead.

The old playbook, buying inventory months in advance, pricing it statically, hoping demand holds, is gone. AI changes the game entirely. When tariffs shift – and if the last week is anything to go by, they will continue to – our system doesn’t just help brands cut losses; it finds the right margin, the right timing, the right market. It identifies that a jacket made with a slightly different material can mitigate a cost increase without consumers noticing. 

It finds that certain products will perform better in DTC than wholesale if distributor margins get squeezed. It identifies where demand elasticity shifts before a single unit is sold.

The brands that will win out through the tariff turmoil will be the ones that stop seeing volatility as a risk, and start seeing it as a lever they can pull to their advantage, with AI as their ally..

Optimizing costs

Exploring traditional solutions to mitigating the cost impact of tariffs – perhaps renegotiating deals with suppliers, implementing price rises, and absorbing tariff costs into margins – will only get retailers so far. 

While price rises play slightly better in luxury than other areas, due to there being less price sensitivity, that lever has already been pulled by many retailers to mitigate the effects of inflation. So, it’s by no means a no-brainer. 

A more holistic thought process is needed – one that better links cause and effect.

Supply chains are a system of constraints. When one link shifts, the entire chain must adapt. A new tariff doesn’t just increase costs, it forces changes in production timelines, sourcing strategies, and even the way inventory moves from factory to store. This is where most brands lose money. 

Because they’re manually addressing they’re problem, they don’t have the ability to see the whole picture – they adjust one piece but miss the domino effect it has across the entire operation. 

autone’s technology rewrites this equation. When tariffs disrupt trade flows, we don’t just suggest alternative suppliers, we simulate the entire cost structure: which factory can absorb the change, which shipping route avoids the cost spike, which fulfillment center should stock the product based on shifting demand patterns. It’s not about tweaking one variable, it’s about seeing the whole system at once and making the smartest possible move. It’s something that hunch, intuition and experience alone just can’t hope to match.

The difference between a brand struggling under tariff pressure and a brand thriving despite it isn’t luck. It’s intelligence. Artificial intelligence that sees the opportunities others miss and turns disruption into an advantage.

Last words

The reality is, uncertainty isn’t going away. While it’s tariffs today, we’re all having to get used to the fact that it could be almost anything else that completely disrupts the status quo tomorrow. 

So, sitting it out really isn’t an option. Increased business resilience needs to be a priority – and AI is empowering brands to confidently underpin their strategies with ‘the unpredictable’ mitigated.

The winners in the retail landscape won’t be those who complain about volatility, but those who build agility into their DNA. AI isn’t just a tool, it’s a mindset shift from reactive to proactive, from guesswork to precision.

At its core, autone is designed to make the unpredictable predictable. autone’s Intelligent Forecast doesn’t just react quickest to disruptions, it anticipates them.