Dear Customers and Industry Partners, 

In May 2025, the U.S. government imposed a 30% tariff on model trains imported from China—products that had been tariff-free until 2025.  This change significantly increases the cost of production for U.S. based model train companies.  At Broadway Limited, we want to provide you with a clear explanation of what’s happening, how it affects you, and what steps we’re taking in response.

What Tariffs Mean for Model Train Pricing and Availability:

A tariff is a tax collected by the US government from US companies when we import a product.  Trains from China now have a 30% tariff, meaning a model that cost Broadway Limited $100 would have a tax of $30, making our total cost $130.  Manufacturers, importers, distributors and hobby stores can absorb some of this, but the retail price will still rise.  Since the tariffs have changed so quickly and unpredictably, our plan is to continue announcing product at prices that do not include a tariff.  We will adjust the price shortly before the product arrives and give customers a chance to cancel orders if needed.   

What Is Broadway Limited Doing About Tariffs?

Six years ago, BLI started manufacturing in Vietnam.  Products from Vietnam have a 10% tariff.  Progress has been slow, but we now import 1/2 of our product from Vietnam.  BLI would like to manufacture in the US, but many of the molds and components are not available here, and since the tariffs were implemented at such a high rate with almost no warning, we would be bankrupt before we could start production.  To prevent this, we are shipping more products from Vietnam and increasing prices on products from China and Vietnam.  We are also trying to get quotes from US tool makers for some future products.

BLI is participating in the Hobby Industry Coalition, a group of companies in the hobby industry cooperating to lobby to exclude hobby products from tariffs.  www.hobbycoalition.org.

How can you help?

Broadway Limited would like our government to negotiate with China and other nations to eliminate unfair trade practices without destroying the model train industry.
Congress has the power to negotiate tariffs. Use the links below to contact your senators and representative asking them to reduce these tariffs to a reasonable level and implement them gradually to save our hobby and the jobs of American workers employed in the industry.

Contact your Senator: https://www.senate.gov/senators/senators-contact.htm
Contact your State Representative: https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative
You can also send a message to the President at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact.
You can email the US Trade representative, Ambassador Jamieson Greer at:  engagement@ustr.eop.gov.

Thank you for your support!

Thank you for your continued support. We urge you to continue pre-ordering our products. Since the tariff situation changes daily, we will continue to announce products at their regular MSRP and will increase prices as needed when the products clear customs.  You will be able to cancel orders if you must, but we urge you support BLI and our hobby and help us survive this time of uncertainty. 

The video below is a message from the Hobby Industry Coalition.