Matthew Glanfield, co-owner of the venerable Warhammer 40k and miniature gaming YouTube channel MiniWarGaming, says that tariffs the Trump administration has imposed on Canadian imports to America “hurt us as a Canadian business”. The channel plans to attend the Adepticon convention at the end of March with a substantial retail presence, and will pay import duties of 25% on all its merchandise.
Established in 2007, MiniWargaming was the first major breakout success among Warhammer 40k and other miniature wargaming video channels. Today it has 500,000 YouTube subscribers, runs a subscription website for premium videos, operates a deluxe gaming venue in Ontario called ‘The Bunker’, and sells 3d printed miniatures from a print farm.
Glanfield uploaded a video to the MiniWarGaming YouTube channel on Wednesday, explaining why “these new tariffs are going to really affect us”: we’ve embedded it below for easy reference.
“We’re about to go to Adepticon, we’ve been printing like crazy to bring a lot of stuff” to sell, Glanfield explains, “we’ve got Steel Specters, we’ve got terrain, we’ve got Hexen Hills, we’ve got One Page Rules, we’ve got Titan Forge” – a grand selection of alternative miniatures to spice up your Warhammer 40k factions or use in other games. “Once we go across the border we’ll have to pay whatever tariffs happen to be in place”, he adds.
Tariffs are a tax on imported goods, which is paid by the importer to the government. On March 3, the Trump administration enacted a blanket tariff of 25% on manufactured goods from Canada and Mexico entering America, plus a 10% tariff on energy.
Glanfield states this represents “a lot of extra money for a small business like us”, adding “we’re just not quite sure what we’re going to do about that”. He says that MiniWarGaming is reluctant “to pass the cost along” to customers by raising prices, but swallowing the costs will see the firm’s “profits go down by a rather significant amount”.
Glanfield says “our best customers are Americans, you are the largest percentage of people who watch our videos and buy our products and have supported us through these last seventeen and a half years”. Glanfield emphasises the positive, communal sides of the hobby throughout the video, and is very careful not to ascribe blame.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued an official statement on the US administration’s new tariffs on March 3, stating “let me be unequivocally clear – there is no justification for these actions”. In retaliation to the American tariffs, Trudeau announced 25% tariffs on $30 billion worth of American goods effective immediately, with tariffs on a further $125 billion of US goods to take effect on March 24.
“Americans will pay more for groceries, gas, and cars, and potentially lose thousands of jobs”, Trudeau stated, adding that the tariffs “will violate the very trade agreement that was negotiated by President Trump in his last term”.
Want to forget all about the looming shadow of trade wars? Check out our great guides to the Space Marine chapters – they’re only interested in war wars. Or pick anything from our guide to the best Warhammer 40k games on PC to escape to the grim darkness of the far future.
Source: Wargamer
