Tariff troubles: A rubber duck museum is migrating to Canada to stay afloat

Mr. Squawker, a rubber artifact duck from the 1950s, is portion of the postulation connected show astatine The Rubber Duck Museum successful Washington state. It was designed for the Ohio-based Rempel Manufacturing "with a cheerful look and a distinctive squawking dependable erstwhile squeezed," the museum's plaque reads. Neil King hide caption

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Neil King

If you had to prime conscionable 1 spot to instrumentality the somesthesia of relations betwixt the U.S. and Canada close now, see The Rubber Duck Museum successful Point Roberts, Wash.

The depository is located successful a tiny U.S. municipality attached to Canada, not the U.S. mainland. The lone mode to thrust to the town, which is astatine the extremity of a peninsula, is to spell done Canada. This unsocial determination makes the municipality of astir 1,200 radical babelike upon its bluish neighbour for astir everything, including customers looking to adhd to their rubber duck collections.

Neil and Krystal King are the owners of the rubber duck depository and acquisition shop. On display, they person ducks from the Soviet era, aboriginal Disney toys and a rubber ducky belonging to Sesame Street prima Ernie. But a large gully — and what keeps the depository afloat — are the 3,000 ducks for sale. Most are whimsical, featuring celebrities and humanities figures, and cartoon and holiday-themed characters.

But the ducks are nary longer flying disconnected the shelves. Since President Trump launched tariff wars connected countries, including Canada and China, and began insisting Canada volition beryllium the 51st state, acold less Canadian visitors person flocked to this U.S. outpost. After months of dismal sales, and present looking astatine 145% tariffs connected goods from China, the Kings accidental they are packing up the ducks and moving them crossed the borderline into Canada.

Husband and woman Neil and Krystal King, owners of The Rubber Duck Museum successful Point Roberts, Wash., accidental they program to determination their depository and acquisition store to Canada this summer. Their business, which relies heavy connected Canadian tourists, has slumped precocious owed to economical fallout of Trump medication policies and rhetoric. Neil King hide caption

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Neil King

"We've had a batch of regulars and loyal customers scope retired to america passim this full happening the past mates of months, and they're beauteous overmuch each saying the nonstop aforesaid thing," Krystal said. "They consciousness precise offended by a batch of the rhetoric coming retired of the White House close now."

Relations soured betwixt the 2 countries successful February erstwhile President Trump, successful a telephone telephone to past Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, questioned the validity of the borderline pact betwixt the U.S. and Canada. Trump besides mentioned his dislike of the long-standing water-sharing agreements betwixt the 2 countries, and negotiations implicit respective deals person since been enactment connected pause.

President Trump has said tariffs are to halt countries that helium says are taking vantage of the U.S., including Canada, and to fortify the nation's economical position.

Many Canadians spot it differently.

"What helium [Trump] wants is to spot a full illness of the Canadian economy, due to the fact that that'll marque it easier to annex us," Trudeau told the quality media successful March.

After Washington imposed 25% tariffs connected Canada, Ottawa answered successful kind. Trudeau urged Canadians to enactment location and walk their wealth domestically. And that's conscionable what galore person done.

"They don't similar their sovereignty being threatened," Krystal said. "They consciousness similar the lone instrumentality they person is boycotting the United States and keeping those tourer dollars retired of there."

It appears to beryllium working. In March, the fig of cars going done the engaged borderline crossing successful Blaine, Wash., was down astir 28% compared to the erstwhile year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics. (Canadians marque up the largest fig of planetary visitors to the U.S., and past twelvemonth they generated $20.5 cardinal successful spending, according to the nonprofit U.S. Travel Association.) But it's besides existent that the Canadian dollar has fallen successful value—though it has precocious clawed backmost immoderate of its losses—making the U.S. much costly and little attractive.

"I'd accidental it's a beauteous effectual tool," Krystal said, referring to the boycott. Normally, the tiny town's streets are bustling with Canadians who emotion to transverse the borderline for cheaper nutrient and gas. These days the shops and restaurants are astir empty.

"Every speech we've had, they've been precise polite successful existent Canadian fashion," she said. "Very apologetic that it'll impact america personally. But yeah, they're feeling precise powerfully close present astir this issue."

There are different factors astatine work. Nearly each the ducks the Kings merchantability successful their acquisition store are made successful China, truthful they are taxable to the 145% tariffs that President Trump placed connected China and went into effect past month.

There is simply a bounds connected however overmuch idiosyncratic is going to wage for a rubber duck, the concern owners said.

"We already person to support our prices artificially debased due to the fact that of the Canadian dollar versus the U.S. dollar," Krystal said. "So our customers coming successful already person compromised buying power."

The Kings, who opened up the depository astir a twelvemonth ago, said they simply can't spend to support the Rubber Duck Museum unfastened successful Point Roberts. But they don't privation to adjacent their doors either. "It is truthful unique, truthful fun," Neil said. "The radical that travel successful conscionable laughter and laughter … and we conscionable don't privation to suffer that."

This summer, they program to determination the depository postulation and store conscionable crossed the borderline into Canada and reopen there. They won't person to wage the 145% tariffs connected the ducks from China. And they won't beryllium astatine the whims of planetary diplomacy, oregon the deficiency of it. They'll proceed to unrecorded successful Point Roberts, the spot they telephone location and wherever they are raising their 3-year-old daughter.

Even if President Trump were to abruptly driblet the tariffs, the Kings said they would inactive determination their small depository to Canada.

"It's conscionable the instability of, you know, waking up each time and going, 'Is contiguous a tariff time oregon not?' " Neil said. "It conscionable isn't a sustainable concern exemplary for immoderate tiny business, fto unsocial a tiny concern that is reliant connected Canadian tourism."

"It's not the measurement we wanted to take, honestly," Krystal added. "We emotion having our quaint small store here. It means truthful overmuch to us… But it's not a prime betwixt moving the ducks to Canada oregon keeping them here. It's a prime betwixt moving to Canada oregon closing."