Passenger to pause US activity to focus on EU following tariffs

British outdoor brand Passenger Clothing, which was named one of the UK’s fastest-growing private companies in 2023, will be pausing its US growth initiatives following the recent tariffs from the US administration.

In a statement, Passenger said in the wake of the US tariffs, it would be turning its attention to its “fast-growing" EU business and will be “shifting its resources and rerouting its stock that was planned for the US to deliver against strong demand in Germany, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, and the UK”.

In 2024, Passenger grew 76 percent to 57 million pounds net revenue, up from 33 million pounds in 2023. Currently, its fastest-growing region is Europe, alongside its large customer base in the UK, where it began 13 years ago.

Jon Lane, chief executive at Passenger, said: “Passenger has seen rapid direct-to-consumer growth in the US over the last two years, and has a large pipeline of wholesale orders building from retailers such as REI, Scheels, Backcountry, and outdoor speciality stores.

"However, with US tariffs increasing so rapidly and being so volatile, this has turned the US from a great opportunity to a risky proposition.”

Passenger Clothing rethinking US expansion due to tariffs

The company states that by utilising several production partners in Asia and using recycled fabrics coming out of the region, it has seen its average duties and tariffs climb to over 50 percent. So, for every 1 million US dollars of stock that lands in the US, the Passenger business will be responsible “for a further 500,000 US dollars in duties and tariffs on day one alone”.

Lane added: “Although Passenger was looking forward to scaling in the US, given the opportunity in Europe, where we are seeing triple-digit growth in some countries and a stable business environment, we’re confident that this shift in focus will enable Passenger to deliver on its ambitious plans.

“We’ve spoken to all our key retail partners in the US and really appreciate their positive feedback and long-term support. Like many others, we’ll be keeping a close eye on the US over the coming months to see if tariffs are reduced to a sustainable level and if the landscape has become more settled.”