Inside America's department stores, tariff-triggered price hikes are picking up

Tracking of recent price hikes in apparel, footwear, and bags across major U

Department store chain websites shows the accelerating impact of tariffs

May was the turning point, according to a Dataweave analysis of prices from Macy's, Nordstrom, Dillard's and other chains. "Companies are mitigating what they can and are passing on the rest," Bill Simon, former CEO of Walmart, tells CNBC

The Vietnam trade deal announced by President Trump on Wednesday would result in a minimum 30% in total tariffs on Vietnamese goods, and potentially more than double that rate for goods that are in Vietnam but originate from China

Brandon Bell | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesThe impact of President Trump's tariffs on prices throughout the economy is expected to increase over the summer

Department store chains including Macy's, Nordstrom, and Dillard's, the evidence of more sticker price inflation is starting to show up across more items

Recent price increases in apparel, footwear, and bags across major U

Department-store websites tracked by DataWeave indicate a turning point in May, when prices started their ascent

DataWeave analyzes nearly 15,000 SKUs (stock keeping units), a scannable code retailers use to identify and track a duct, and has been collecting that data from January to June for signs of price hikes in footwear, apparel, and bags. "Footwear is now as much as 4% above January levels at some banners, while apparel is roughly half that pace," said Karthik Bettadapura, co-founder & CEO of DataWeave

According to the data, Macy's 1589 SKUs of footwear reported a 4. 2% increase in price, ed by Nordstrom (3. 1%), and Dillard's (2%. )Prices in store may vary slightly from online prices, but typically the same pricing trend

Type of duct and its sourcing can influence how fast the price hikes arrive

Private-label lines, many of which are made in China, refresh every few months, so retailers Macy's and Nordstrom feel higher landed costs sooner, according to Bettadapura

Footwear reacts fastest because it carries some of the steepest baseline duties and relies heavily on China for pairs. "Even a modest levy can ripple through quickly once fresh stock lands in distribution centers," Bettadapura said

Apparel, with longer design cycles and a more diversified supply base, "is moving more gradually," she added

Macy's, Nordstrom and Dillard's did not respond to requests for

The SKU data supports findings from a recent survey conducted by the Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America, where 55% of respondents said they expect their average retail price to rise between 6%-10% in 2025 as a result of tariffs. "With all back-to-school styles now facing tariffs of between 10-30 percent, higher prices should not be a surprise this summer," said Stephen Lamar, CEO of the American Apparel and Footwear Association. "While each company makes their own decisions, these tariff costs are now being felt across the board," he said

In apparel, DSW topped the list in recent price increases, at 2%, ed by Macy's (1. 9%), and Nordstrom (1. 8%), according to Dataweave. "If these tariffs persist or increase after July 9, we can expect more of the same in the seasons to come," Lamar said

Trump has been non-committal recently on sticking to the July 9 deadline his White House set for tariff deals with many trading partners or implement additional tariffs

The White House announced on Wednesday morning it has a trade deal with one key retail manufacturing partner, Vietnam

Trump said in a social post the tariff rate on Vietnamese goods will be 20%, and go to 40% for any goods that are in Vietnam but originate in other countries, such as China, in what is called "transshipment," a supply chain strategy also known as "China Plus One" that has been used by companies to avoid tariffs

Vietnam trade deal concerning to retail suppliersApparel companies that rely on Vietnam's manufacturing capacity could face higher import costs under the new tariff rate

Nike, Lululemon, Patagonia, Puma, and H&M are among retail industry companies with manufacturing operations in Vietnam

Vietnam is the second-largest supplier for footwear, apparel, and accessories sold into the U

Market, according to the American Apparel and Footwear Association

Imported 274 million pairs of footwear from Vietnam, accounting for over half of all athletic footwear imports by volume and value, according to the Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America, and it says Vietnam is on pace to be the largest international footwear supplier in 2025

Meanwhile, the 40% transshipment tariff that has yet to be ly defined by the administration. "Disrupting that pipeline with additional tariffs would hit American consumers and our industry hard," FDRA CEO Matt Priest said in a statement on Wednesday calling the Vietnam tariff agreement as "unnecessary" and "bad economics. "Next move on prices may come from consumers"Retailers have long warned that tariffs will impact pricing, and some consumers may be starting to see those reflected in key consumer ducts," said Jonathan Gold, vice president of supply chain and customs policy at the National Retail Federation. "Tariffs continue to be a significant challenge for retailers, especially with the uncertainty and unknowns regarding the final tariff rates. "He said retailers have tried to mitigate price increases, but the merchandise subject to the tariffs is working its way through the supply chain and is now being placed on store shelves. "We'll be watching the back-to-school intake closely to gauge whether this pricing momentum accelerates or levels off," Bettadapura said

Bill Simon, former CEO of Walmart, said the data correlates with what he is seeing, and the next move in either stoking or stifling the inflation trend across ducts may be up to the consumer. "Companies are mitigating what they can and are passing on the rest," Simon told CNBC. "Consumers, who are the final arbiter of tariffs, then come into play

Will they buy the item that has gone up in price, or will they switch to another item in the same category that has less (or no) tariff

The customer gets to decide if they want to leave the category all together," he said

Simon gave an example from the grocery aisle, saying if the price of bananas goes up because of a tariff, customers can decide to either buy them or exit the category and buy oranges from California or Florida instead. "If you look at the item level, you will see a higher price on banana but when you look at the category, you will see no price increase because consumers switched to oranges

That is why I believe despite seeing item-level price increases, we are not seeing broader inflation increasing

Consumers are using their power to determine what is too much and what is not," he said

Peter Boockvar, chief investment officer at Bleakley Financial Group, says inflation is underway, "and has been for the last few months," citing a recent rise in core import prices, ex food and energy, in April and May. "The only question is how this will now flow through the supply chain and who gets to eat it," Boockvar said. "[Fed Chair Jerome] Powell has made it that he is going to wait as long as possible until the tariffs fully work their way through the supply chain so he can see where they end up in terms of absorption. " watch now2:2402:24Fed Chair Powell: We went on hold when we saw the size of the tariffsSquawk on the StreetOnline shopping sees biggest slowdown in over decade as tariffs disrupt e-commerce: SurveyLori Ann LaRoccoDeep inside U

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