TariffScan
Margin impact calculator and sourcing alternative finder for ecommerce sellers hit by US tariff chaos.
The Idea
A self-serve tool that tells ecommerce sellers exactly how much US tariffs are eating their margins, and where to source from instead. Plug in your product category, supplier country, and cost of goods. Get back a clear breakdown of your tariff exposure and three alternative sourcing countries with lower rates.
Why Now
US tariffs were overhauled again in February 2026. The de minimis exemption (the loophole that let cheap Chinese goods in duty-free) got killed. Amazon is demanding 20-30% supplier discounts to offset its own 15% tariff burden. Small Shopify and FBA sellers are getting margin-squeezed with zero visibility into their exposure or options. Only 7% of companies currently use any tariff management tool (Thomson Reuters, Feb 2026). The tools that exist are enterprise-grade and cost thousands. Nobody is serving the 2 million+ Shopify/Amazon SMBs in plain English.
How to Build
Next.js frontend with a simple product entry form (product category + supplier country + COGS). Pull from the USITC HTS tariff database (public API) to get current duty rates. Claude calculates margin impact per unit, per month, at current order volume. Then suggests 3 alternative sourcing countries for that product category with lower tariff exposure, with rough cost-to-switch estimates. Email alerts when tariff rates change on tracked products.
Revenue Model
Free tier: one product lookup per day (lead gen). Pro: $29/mo for unlimited lookups, saved products, email alerts. Business: $79/mo for team seats, bulk CSV upload, Shopify integration. Target: 500 Pro users = $14,500 MRR. Realistic in 6 months if you get in front of the Shopify seller community.
Effort
1-2 weeks. The tariff data is free and structured. The math is simple. The hard part is making it feel trustworthy and non-scary.
Risk
Tariff rates change fast, so data freshness is critical or you erode trust immediately. If tariff policies continue getting challenged in court, demand could soften. "Tariff calculator" is googleable, so you need to own a distribution channel, not just a product.
Strong timing play. The pain is acute, the market is massive, existing tools are enterprise-only, and the underlying data is free. The volatility itself is the product. Sellers need a nerve centre precisely because things keep changing. Build the free tool first, get it in front of r/FulfillmentByAmazon and Shopify communities, convert on alert/tracking features. Not a forever business, but could be a very profitable 12-18 month window.