2 weeks Ago By Jeff Kiger
ZUMBROTA, Minn. — Standing in a Zumbrota warehouse next to Busy Baby founder Beth (Fynbo) Benike, U.S.
Rep. Kelly Morrison urged the Trump administration to immediately change course and exempt small businesses from the 145% tariffs on goods coming from China. “As an American, and especially as a member of the Committee for Small Business, it is absolutely unthinkable that the administration is doing this to our small businesses, and that the Republican majority in Congress is allowing it to happen.
It's unthinkable to me that this administration and congressional majority are willfully choosing to force small business owners into making impossible decisions,” said Morrison to the crowd gathered on Monday for the press conference. “..
. This does not need to be happening. These trade wars are not only reckless, they are completely unnecessary.
” ADVERTISEMENT Benike, named the U.S. Small Business Administration's Minnesota 2025 Small Business Person of the Year, said her business is down to six to eight weeks' worth of supply of her baby products.
She is still trying to get $158,000 of her silicone place mats that are sitting in storage in China to the U.S. to keep her company afloat.
“Small businesses are not going to bring manufacturing back to the U.S., so let us be exempt and at least stay in business.
If the mission is to bring manufacturing back to the U.S., we're not the ones who are going to do it,” she said, reinforcing Morrison’s statements that the trade war with China is not boosting U.
S. manufacturing as promised by President Donald Trump. Morrision, who wrote a letter to U.
S. Commerce Sec. Howard Lutnick and Treasury Sec.
Scott Bessent asking for a small business exemption, pointed out that the administration had exempted smartphones and laptops from the Chinese tariffs, which benefited Apple. Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, donated $1 million to Trump’s Inaugural Committee. “Small business owners may not have millions of dollars to personally lobby the president, but they are the backbone of our economy.
...
Their voices must be heard, so that's what we're doing here today. We're calling for immediate relief for America's small businesses,” said Morrison. “If we can make one thing explicitly clear here today, it is that we do not have the luxury of time.
We need immediate action from this administration.” Morrison, a Democrat who represents Minnesota’s Third District, described Benike as “the picture-perfect example of the American dream and success.” And yet, while the U.
S. Army veteran had managed to create a successful small company, its future is in danger due to the tariffs. Benike created the prototype for the placemat in her kitchen in Oronoco.
Helped by economic development groups, including the Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation in Owatonna, she started to grow Busy Baby and even made an appearance on the “Shark Tank” TV show that features start-up pitches. Busy Baby products are on the shelves at Walmart and Target, for now. While she has enough product to fulfill her contract with Target, a deal to expand her relationship with Walmart is on hold due to the tariffs.
ADVERTISEMENT While hoping for an exemption and looking for options to refocus her company internationally, Benike is trying to crowdfund $229,000 on GoFundMe to pay tariffs on the Busy Baby products stranded in China, where they were made. “We're not going to fail. We're not going to teach our kids that you just lay down and give up.
So we have a lot to try to figure out yet. We're going to keep working at it. I'm going to D.
C. to get my award, and we're going to ask (for tariff relief). I’m going to continue using my voice for small businesses,” she said.
.
