Tariff saga creates a meme war on social media, making it difficult for brands to ‘control the message’

Some Chinese-based influencers and manufacturers are taking to social media in an attempt to expose how luxury goods are made and allegedly shipped off to European countries for labeling and significant mark-ups. They’re hoping consumers instead buy directly from China’s manufacturing facilities.

Whether these posts are accurate remains unclear — and ultimately doesn’t matter, according to four agencies and brand strategists, as they may shift how consumers will shop and perceive major brands that have been named in these posts, from Nike to Lululemon and high-end goods from Chanel to Prada. U.S.-based brands need to have a plan, they say, to respond to the trade war’s meme war — using social media to be more transparent around their production process, craftsmanship and — ultimately — to convince consumers to that their brand value matters.

“The curtain has been pulled back, and it’s very difficult for governments to now control the message,” said Amy Luca, global head of social at marketing and tech consultancy Monks. “It’s the very first time that a trade war has gone directly to consumers, and the messaging and the battle of that trade war is being fought in social media.”

For example, in one video a Chinese influencer goes behind-the-scenes with luxury hand bags like Dior and claims that its cardigans are actually from Beyond Garments in Hangzhou, the capital of China’s Zhejiang Province. She says the supplier is also behind other luxury labels including Sandro, Maje and Versace. LVMH (owner of Dior), SMCP (owner of Sandro and Maje) and Capri Holdings (owner of Versace) did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Beyond Garments is their supplier.

Brand transparency and identity

Luxury brands have already started to be more transparent about where their goods are made. Last February, for example, Hermes took Vogue inside its leather goods studio near Paris to show how bags are. This month, the luxury brand showed how its watches are made in France behind-the-scenes on YouTube.

“I do think you’re seeing an increase in luxury brands spending on really high-quality content production,” said Kirby Brooks Todd, managing director, head of social and influencers for Mekanism, adding that the behind the curtain approach “will only increase” from these brands.

Aside from brands being more transparent, some can use this opportunity play up their local and domestic products that are “Made in the USA” and emphasize their brand identities and stories, Luca explained.

As a proactive measure, Monks has been conducting social listening for clients to track industry and consumer sentiments on the evolving tariff situation. In a two week period between March 24 and April 9, it tracked 5.3 million unique mentions of tariffs across social media — that’s more than double the volume of conversations around Formula 1, which started in March.

“Brands either have to choose to not engage in the conversation or continually reinforce why [consumers are] buying the brand name,” Luca said. “That is everything from not just that individual product, but what the brand stands for.”

Some consumers are paying closer attention to the manufacturing process. Some videos from TikTok creators including @lunasourcingchina and @sen.bags question the “made in” labels from France and Italy, suggesting that some components are completed in China before final assembly elsewhere. (Newsweek reported that a “Made in Italy” labeling requires that the product’s last substantial transformation to occur in Italy.) The move calls into question how much consumers will care about the manufacturing process behind big brands, noted agency execs.

Some brands predict that Gen Z and other younger audiences scrolling TikTok actually don’t buy a lot of these luxury products —and therefore might be insulated from these messages, explained Robin Westerling, CEO at Longvadon, a French-founded luxury Apple Watch band designer.

“Many TikTok users can’t afford these types of goods, which is one reason we don’t advertise on this platform,” Westerling said. But Westerling suspects that it could “permeate” more than luxury goods to affect other common products like shoes and shirts.

Questions of value

If the viral videos start pushing shoppers to buy directly from manufacturers overseas to get better deals, it could start to dilute the market and make business challenging for some brands. In some posts, Chinese manufacturers and influencers are telling people to message them for more information and links to buy directly from them.

“This can drive down the perceived value of the products, which may make them undesirable across the board,” said Reilly Newman, brand strategist at brand development company Motif Brands. Newman believes that the direct marketing causes people to consider cheaper goods, making other established brands seem less valuable in comparison.

Lauren Petrullo, founder and CEO of digital agency Mongoose Media, said “mom and pops and medium-sized businesses” might benefit during this time given they often white label products, and aren’t responsible for manufacturing.

“If you cannot beat on convenience, you have to beat on pricing,” Petrullo said. “And when you’re buying directly from the factory, you will never beat on pricing, so you have to win on something else. … Manufacturers offering direct-to-consumers will win the short-term race, but will not develop any loyalty.”

While deals will grab people in this moment, those brands may not get consumers to come back when the sales are over.

“If they’re not [selling] products that resonate to their values and they’re just a commodity, you’re running on borrowed time,” Petrullo said.

— Kristina Monllos contributed reporting.