Recently, the international news has been viewed week to week, and even day to day. It could involve trade with the US and China, economic ups and downs in general or, closer to home, the relationship with nearby Canada. Whatcom County businesses are seeing changes, and they are striving to acknowledge the struggles and possible solutions in the midst.
Having grown up with one foot on each side of the border, it was natural for Suzanne Smith of White Rock, British Columbia, to choose Birch Bay Square when her pop-up shop outgrew its model just 18 months into its start. The result was a brick-and-mortar location for Betty Be Good Boutique at a corner of Birch Bay Square just off Interstate 5 between Birch Bay and Blaine.
That was around 10 years ago. Since then, several significant events have occurred with impacts on local and international economies: the COVID-19 pandemic, changing exchange rates between the US and Canada, and tariff discussions that seem still to be unsettled.
“By popular demand, I needed to settle my business in a retail location that would reach both sides of the border, and Blaine felt just right given my family’s history here as owners of Subway restaurants in Blaine, Ferndale and Bellingham,” Smith said.
Due to the location, not to mention her own influence, customers at the Birch Bay boutique are 60 percent Canadian in the summertime and 50 percent throughout the rest of the year.
“We get an influx in visitors from the north during the summer months, but having the Nexus office nearby (in the same complex) keeps the travel of Canadians going all throughout the year.”
Smith saw a distinct change early in 2025.
“In recent months, my Canadian customer has been scared away by the confusion of the border tariffs and the unsettling reports they are reading about cross-border travel. They’re fearful of the idea of paying unknown tariffs on goods from the US, as Canadian customs is now randomly enforcing the less-than-24-hour rule of zero exemption on US-made goods specifically,” Smith wrote in early May.
“All of these things considered have made marketing to Canadians very challenging,” Smith said. “I’ve done my best to communicate the truth about crossing the border and to dispel myths that exist, but overall, most Canadians choose to stay home and spend their money within Canada for the time being. Even close friends are sad for me, but they have convictions about what’s happening and feel like they can’t compromise them.”
“I have always done and continue to build my business with advertising and promotions through social media, but budgets are cut as soon as revenue decreases,” Smith said. “It’s a slippery slope.”
Smith is using something she learned during the pandemic: a willingness to change.
“As I’ve had to do since COVID started, I’m sharpening my pencil to stay relevant, negotiating and taking advantage of supplier partnerships to ensure I can offer fair prices and good quality for the long haul.”
Smith added: “We are children of a common mother. It says this on the 100-plus-year-old monument that planks our two nations. The tariff war cannot destroy years of friendship and goodwill between our two countries. I love my American friends and neighbors, and I’ll always remember that this is politics, but business and community is about people.”
Linda Vander Giessen opened her new women’s clothing boutique, Mood Swings, at 728 Peace Portal Way, adjacent to Border Town Pizza on a corner looking out toward the harbor. Vander Giessen, who also works as a family counselor in Lynden, previously owned Gypsy Girl Clothing in downtown Lynden for three years. That shop focused on boho chic attire, while the new one is about finding good labels for good prices — but only one of each, so shoppers go to their size to select. Her husband, electrician and barbecue expert Gary Vander Giessen, was doing some work at Border Town when he noticed the space was available, thinking it would work for her to reopen her shop.
That was in December 2024. Mood Swings opened in May 2025. Linda Vander Giessen said others warned her of slowing cross-border traffic impacting the town, even before the tariffs.
“But I thought people here need this store — the locals. I don’t have to rely on Canadians. It is for local women. I didn’t even think about providing clothes for Canadian women. I thought it would be fun. If the Canadians come, they are an added blessing.”
Prior to this current economic change, the local economy was growing. According to new data from Bellingham Whatcom County Tourism, visitor spending in Whatcom County grew to $775.9 million in 2024, up 3.4 percent from 2023. Modest growth was seen across all sectors of the hospitality industry, with accommodations leading the way. The study was prepared by the State of Washington Tourism, which tracks the number of visitors to the region and looks at their spending in five categories: food and beverage ($193.2 million, or 25 percent), recreational and the arts ($91.6 million, or 11.8 percent), retail sales ($141.7 million, or 18.3 percent), accommodations ($218 million, or 28 percent), and transportation ($131.4 million, or 16.9 percent). In a seven-year graph of 2018 through 2024, 2020 showed a significant drop in spending due to the pandemic. Since that time, spending has been increasing year by year.
Per the same study, supplemental data reveals that Whatcom County saw 3.49 million visitors in 2024, up slightly from 3.42 million in 2023. Of these visitors, 1.5 million stayed overnight. The per-day impact for an overnight traveling party was $300 (up slightly from $299 in 2023).
“The data from 2024 indicates a steady and modest increase for the year overall,” said Bellingham Whatcom County Tourism CEO Dylan Deane-Boyle. “We observed nearly the same number of visitors but with a higher rate of spending, which is always encouraging to see and directly aligns with our goal of attracting visitors who stay in our area longer and spend more while they’re here. We are hopeful for continued growth into 2025 as we navigate challenges related to Canadian sentiment, inflation and higher travel prices.”
Guy Occhiogrosso, president and CEO of the Bellingham Regional Chamber of Commerce, said he is seeing different impacts in early 2025 between the smaller border towns in contrast with Bellingham. The border towns, specifically Sumas and Blaine, are more dependent on Canadian visitors as part of their economies, whether from in-person shopping or from sales tax resulting from purchases made online and then shipped, he said.
Regardless of their size or proximity to the border, Occhiogrosso suggested all cities in the region look at both short-term and longer-term solutions beyond the tariff and inequitable dollar exchange scenario, which can come and go, and the dollar exchange (which has actually improved in recent months for the Canadians, from their dollar being worth around 68 US cents to 73 cents.)
Impacts vary by location and by type of business or store. The larger box stores around Bellingham have seen more of an impact in contrast to the smaller brick-and-mortar Bellingham shops, Occhiogrosso said. The larger stores have seen losses of 25-40 percent, and the others less.
While a survey is in progress from Western Washington University’s Border Policy Research Institute, the Small Business Administration and the Chamber of Commerce, the most up-to-date data from the institute shows a 51 percent drop in Canadian vehicles crossing into Whatcom County (at Sumas, Lynden, Peace Arch and Blaine) in April 2025 from April 2024.
“There are numerous factors driving this decline beyond the low value of the Canadian dollar,” said Laurie Trautman, director of the Border Policy Research Institute. “(The) repeal of the carbon tax in Canada, which significantly decreased the cost of gas; Canadian boycotts and anger at US actions (51st state rhetoric, tariffs); Canadian counter-tariffs, which placed a 25 percent surtax on personal goods by shoppers returning from the US; increased concern and fear about US border enforcement.”
CJ Seitz of the Washington Small Business Development Center said the center is seeing changes.
“I think we are just starting to feel the impact from the decrease of Canadian consumers,” Seitz said. “We know that border crossings are down 52 percent, and it is affecting border businesses that rely on the Canadian customer.” ■