I’m holding off and waiting for tariffs in the US to make prices lower where I live by reducing demand.

My husband is going to have to upgrade his work computer because there’s no way it’s lasting four more years 😔

I’m American.

I dont have the money to stockpile anything.

Espresso machine I’ve been wanting to buy.

Solar panel system for the house. (this one will get WAY more expensive)

Very thankful my girlfriend and I got ducks this spring. They’ll be worth their weight in gold shortly enough.

Canadian here. I expect the supply of products that would otherwise have gone to the US to go up and the price here to go down. I’ll just wait for the US tariff discounts to hit.

Toilet paper so I can wipe your mouth.

I have very little to do with the US and said tariffs, so I’m not affected directly.

In general though I try to be rational with big(ger) purchases - I research things for at least a week or two before buying (but more often it’s months) and try to maximise my use of what I buy.

Scotch

To prepare for food shortages/price increases: I’m buying seeds for things I know I can grow in our garden, and stocking up on one or two of each of the fungicides, pesticides, and soil amendments that we regularly use. I bought 30 pound sacks of rice and beans, two large boxes of shelf stable nutrition shakes, and shelf stable vacuum sealed bread. We’re considering buying half a cow with the neighbors, who have a deep freezer. I want to buy a pot plant, it’ll probably depend on how much they cost. I already have a good supply of sunflower lecithin so I can make my own edibles.

To prepare for the EPA being gutted or other impacts of climate change: we bought AA and AAA batteries and refilled everything in our bug out bags, including first aid stuff and emergency high calorie food (in case of natural disasters.) We’re installing a reverse osmosis filter in the kitchen sink (we’re concerned about water safety as there have already been problems in our area due to old infrastructure) and it comes with a storage tank. Made sure we had plenty of candles, matches, flashlights, charcoal, lighters and lighter fluid, and a small grill for outside. Have an adapter for the car so we can plug things in if the power goes out.

To prepare for FDA/insurance/medical issues: We bought extra vitamins, and we’re asking our doctors to prescribe as much of our necessary drugs as they are allowed to. I learned how to do all my physical therapy at home and have been collecting home exercise equipment for a while, unrelated to this but I’m grateful to have it all now. We also bought a few large bottles of rubbing alcohol and hydrogen peroxide. We already have a massive collection of OTC meds because I’m chronically ill and use them often. We plan to add a couple extra boxes of the most important stuff the next few grocery trips. Most important for us: painkillers, epi pens, allergy meds, inhalers, hydrocortisone, and diaper rash cream. No baby but it’s useful for a lot of skin irritations.

For general preparation: I looked at the labels on all our personal care products (lotion, face wash, etc) and if it’s made outside of the U.S. we ordered as much as we could afford, usually 1-2 of each. We’re low maintenance so thankfully it wasn’t too expensive. New undies for everyone, filters for everything that needs them (furnace, vents, pet fountains, etc.) Made sure we had needles, thread, super glue, duct tape, white vinegar, borax, and a couple things of Dr. Bronner’s soap. We’re also saving all our glass jars, packaging, etc (thank God we have a garage…) My grandparents lived through the depression and taught me how to make do and mend. That’s my mindset right now.

We have a bidet and already buy TP in bulk so I’m not super worried about paper products. All our pets got checkups and boosters. We made appointments to get all our boosters as well (tetanus, covid, flu shot, etc.) We got a pet first aid kit and book. I got some general house stuff like wood filler, wood conditioner, nails, screws, and cleaning supplies. We shop at costco so honestly it’s not much more than we usually have in the house.

I might be over prepared but I don’t care. We’ve only spent ~$500 and decided to skip Christmas gifts so thankfully we can afford it. I’m considering a few more things but as it stands I’m feeling prepared.

Probably a computer. I still don’t know if I want a laptop or a desktop. Still don’t know if I want to stay with Apple products or try something new. The frameworks laptops look cool but not the best bang for the buck. I also assume the tariff will kill the supply chain of spare parts which makes them attractive in the first place.

Le Creuset.

Cast iron is imported from France.
Ceramics are imported from China.

https://www.lecreuset.com/signature-oval-baker/20188US.html

https://www.lecreuset.com/classic-3-piece-oval-baking-dish-set-/ST00979.html

Panic buying like this only leads to more price increases. I just buy the minimum, like usual.

as someone else said, plan for a long term(longer than four years). as for me I’m going to phase it out over three years to be reliant on the system as least as possible. the fourth year would hopefully be close to 80% self-reliant.

I’m planning on going all out on a garden next year. nothing fancy; potato, onion, carrot, tomato, squash (fall and winter), peas, string beans, misc herbs, sun flowers, maybe some corn(everybody grows it around here so bartering for some would be easy, besides corn is a pita to grow).

whatever I can’t dry, I’ll can.

my goal is to be at least 50-60% self sufficient after the first year. this should only require me to buy meat and seasonings mostly. then add on anything else I’ll need.

consumables like TP and tissues can’t really be stocked reliably as they degrade over time due to humidity.

I’ll also be stocking up on common medications for my kids for at least the four years. the last time we went through this there were many product recalls. this time there’s talk of defunding the FDA/CDC. I can only imagine the chaos parents will be in when a pandemic sweeps through again and you can’t even trust the medicine anymore. common things like cold/flu, fever reducers, epi-pens. (if you plan on doing this, don’t be a dick and buy everything at once. take a third so others can still get what they need and get more next week).

I also plan on stocking up on slingshot rubbers and maybe some more ammo. There’s a lot of wildlife around me that could either be eaten and/or used a fertilizer. I hope I’ll never need to resort to it, but would rather have it and hunt rather than not and starve. probably add some bow strings and arrows to the list for bigger game like deer.

I have kind of been planning for this for years so it’s not my first time doing this. my best advice, do anything you feel you can accomplish successfully. don’t waste time or resources growing food if you don’t have space for a garden (don’t experiment with hydroponics if you don’t have the time or resources to fail multiple times).

Find other ways to contribute to your community like; cleaning and maintaining weapons, fixing tools, home repair, technology/PC repair. anything you can do successfully will give you an edge that gives you an opportunity to barter for what you need, this includes credit in the community.

I once did tech support and one day someone couldn’t pay me. so they gave me some deer they had hunted recently. a year later that person called me and asked if I wanted a job making triple what I was making at my old job(not IT related). credit can’t be eaten, but it goes a long way and is indispensable.

stay strong, be smart, we’ll get through this yet.

This is only tangentially related, but the best thing you can do is make stuff instead of buying it. Somewhat ironically, community building and self sufficiency will be more important than ever. Yeah everyone is going to say electronics but I feel like we all have enough of those already. Forbidden knowledge is far more valuable. Kind of doomer but… that’s where I’m at lately.

Its rough because your talking years. you might be able to stave off a little of the pain but eventually your going to feel it.