WASHINGTON (Nov. 15, 2025) — The U.S. Commerce Department is threatening to slap a 107 percent tariff on pasta imported from Italy — a move so steep, it could shake out not just pasta brands, but grocery importers, specialty shops, and restaurants that depend on the real deal.

Why the U.S. Is Cranking Up Duties

The tariff proposal comes after a Commerce Department probe into 13 Italian pasta producers, including La Molisana and Garofalo, accused of “dumping” — selling in the U.S. at prices allegedly below their domestic market. Officials call it a way to protect local pasta makers. The preliminary duty is 91.74 percent, which would stack on top of an existing 15 percent EU import tariff, creating the 107 percent potential.

Italy and the EU are pushing back hard. Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic has publicly challenged Washington’s calculation, calling the duty “unacceptable.” Meanwhile, Italian producers warn the tariff could be a deal breaker for many.

What It Means for U.S. Importers & Specialty Shops

At shops like Claudio Specialty Food in Philadelphia, where Italian pasta has been a mainstay for decades, the threat of this tax isn’t just academic — it’s very real. “Pasta is basic food,” veteran importer Sal Auriemma told Fortune. “Something’s got to be sacred.”

If the duty sticks, some imported Italian brands may vanish from shelves. For smaller retailers or importers who built their business around authentic products, that could mean either swallowing higher costs or walking away.

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The Risk to Italian Producers Is Real

Thirteen brands are in the crosshairs, and some argue the damage could be “fatal.” Exporters say the punitive tariff could effectively cut them off from the U.S. market, which makes up about 12 percent of Italy’s pasta exports.

Cosimo Rummo, head of Pasta Rummo, warned in interviews that prices at U.S. retailers might more than double — from around $3.99 to as high as $7.99 — before consumers even see the product.

Why This Really Hits SMBs

• Specialty grocers and Italian markets could get squeezed. For local SMBs that import and sell premium Italian pasta, the duty could force them to rethink inventory, pricing, or even whether to carry certain brands.

• Independent restaurants that use authentic Italian pasta in their dishes might face margins getting crushed or decide to switch to U.S.-produced pasta — changing not just flavor, but their identity.

• Supply chain headaches: Importers will need to plan for paused orders, renegotiate costs, or possibly ration inventory, all while navigating uncertainty.

Bigger Picture: Trade, Identity & Business Strategy

At its core, this fight is about more than just pasta. It’s about trade policy, national identity, and what “local” means in global commerce. For small businesses and chefs selling Made in Italy authenticity, this is a moment forced to choose between sourcing legacy ingredients — or going local and abandoning part of their brand identity.

Bottom line

A 107 percent pasta tariff isn’t just a trade story — it’s a potential gut punch for small businesses in the U.S. that built their reputation on imported quality. If this lands, grocery shelves could shift, menus could change, and independent food shops could be forced into a hard pivot.

That might sound like hyperbole. But when you’re talking about pasta — one of the world’s most universal comfort foods — the stakes are… al dente.

NEW YORK / CHICAGO / LOS ANGELES (Nov. 17, 2025) — At a moment when small businesses are feeling squeezed nationally, a few resilient stories from major cities show how local companies are hustling, pivoting and leaning on community — even as macro turmoil threatens their stability.

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Federal Shutdown Strangles Contracted Small Firms

In New York, small contractors tied to government work are among the hardest hit as Congress emerges from the longest shutdown in U.S. history. Firms that rely on federal contracts — like Black Box Safety, which makes flashlights — are reporting major cash-flow snags. A $1.9 million contract, which represents a sizable slice of annual revenue, is stuck in limbo as agency approvals remain stagnant.

“We know from history that departments and agencies — and their contracting partners — will continue to feel the impact of this shutdown for months to come,” Professional Services Council CEO James W. Carroll said in a statement. “For example, there are challenges in digging out from back-logged invoices, rescinding stop work orders and flowing payments throughout the supply chain.”

This applies to SBA funding too: according to a federal alert, the shutdown blocked about $5 billion in guaranteed loans for 10,000 small businesses. That’s not just cash off the table — that’s expansion plans sidelined, payrolls trimmed, and local economies stalled. Though the government is open for business again, lending doesn’t rebound that quickly.

This isn’t just a Washington problem. In Orlando, some early-stage, tech-focused startups in small-business incubators doubted whether they would survive prolonged contract delays too.

Chicago’s Small-Biz Revival: “Chicago Loves Local” Campaign

Meanwhile in Chicago, small-business leaders are mounting a counterattack — not with bailouts but with a grassroots campaign. The “Chicago Loves Local” initiative, backed by community groups including the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce, is calling on city residents to shop neighborhood stores from the North Side to the Southeast Corridor.

One of the campaign’s standouts: Ándale Market, a bodega in Andersonville run by Mia Sakai. She imports niche products, stocks international goods, and is banking on this local love to make or break her holiday season.

“The cost of tariffs is just one of the challenges,” according to Sakai via WBEZ. And for many neighborhood owners, the holidays aren’t just a windfall — they’re make-or-break.

LA’s Chainsaw: From Garage Pop-Up to Permanent Café

Over in Los Angeles, creative SMB grit is winning out. Culinary underground favorite Chainsaw, which made its name hosting dinner-party pop-ups in a garage, is now opening a permanent café in Melrose Hill.

Founder Karla Subero Pittol built her brand on community, creativity, and reinvention. The new spot leans into that: a takeaway window, minimal seating, and a menu that’s just as eclectic as the pop-up — arepas, empanadas, Sri Lankan-inspired curries, and ice cream.

For her and her team, it’s less about scaling fast than doing something real. “We want to be malleable forever,” she said. “All I want to do is feed people good food and make them happy.”

Peep the common thread.

What ties these metros together is a simple business truth: small enterprises are the backbone of local economies — a common mantra among congresspersons. However, they’re also vulnerable to systemic risk. Some are exposed because of government dependency. Others are leaning into community campaigns or bold reinvention to stay alive.

• Cash-flow risk vs. capital access: The federal shutdown is proving how fragile contract-reliant SMBs can be when big-money payers freeze.

• Community as economic engine: Chicago’s campaign shows how consumer behavior shifts can be a powerful lever — especially during crunch time.

• Creativity + authenticity = survival: Chainsaw’s journey proves that passion-driven SMBs, rooted in culture and authenticity, can scale thoughtfully.

For business leaders, investors, and policy watchers, these stories are more than feel-good moments. They’re leading indicators: how vulnerable small businesses respond now will shape where capital flows, where jobs are created, and whether neighborhoods survive or stagnate.

Bottom line

Across the country, small businesses aren’t just weathering the storm — they’re forcing their own narratives. From New York contractors to Chicago grocers to LA pop-up chefs, these entrepreneurs are navigating disruption by leaning into resilience, community and reinvention. The question for 2026 isn’t just whether they survive—but whether they thrive on their own terms.

Bigger limits, bigger stakes

Next year, the base contribution for many 401(k), 403(b) and certain public-sector 457(b) plans ticks up from $23,500 to $24,500 for employees under age 50. For those 50-to-59 (and 64+), the catch-up max moves from an additional $7,500 to $8,000. And for those ages 60-63, the catch-up stays at $11,250.

So far, so usual. But here’s the twist: if your reported Social Security wages hit that $150K+ trigger, the IRS says you’ll lose the traditional pre-tax option for catch-up dollars — they must go in as Roth. That means no up-front tax deduction for that portion of your savings.

Why this matters

Morgan Kreiser, editor of Benefits Quarterly, defines catch-up contributions as opportunities “to defer additional compensation for contribution to their employer’s retirement plan beyond the standard annual contribution limits.” They’re usually available to employees of at least age 50 with a 401(k), 403(b) or governmental 457(b).

If you’re a professional making six figures — mid-to-senior-level with a brand-name employer or running your own business — the new rule hits you where you live. Up until now, you could use catch-ups to reduce taxable income and play defense. Now you’ll have to do the tax game differently: pay now, potentially benefit later.

From an employer or finance-team standpoint, the shift complicates payroll, payroll-software updates, and communications. HR and benefits managers now have to explain why their high-earner employees are staring at a tax hit just for using the plan.

The worker reality: two buckets

The win-ready

If you’re younger (under 50) or you made under $150K in Social Security wages, you’re mostly unaffected by the Roth-only mandate. You’ll just enjoy the higher limits. If you’ve diversified your savings approach (pre-tax + Roth), this may actually give you more strategic ammo.

The “ouch” group

If you did hit $150,000 or more in Box 3 wages, the catch-up dollars you were planning to stash tax-deferred now must go Roth. Meaning: you pay tax now (or reduce your sheltering from tax now), and you invest for tax-free withdrawals later. It may boost long-term outcome, but for those counting on near-term tax relief or thinking of steady-pay rollover strategies, it’s a shift in mindset.

Employer and system implications

Company finance teams now have to build the logic: which employees qualify, which don’t, how to segregate catch-up contributions accordingly, and how to communicate that to the people. Benefit-software vendors are updating code. Payroll services are preparing new flags. Mistakes could cost employers in compliance headaches or audits.

“This is one of those rule changes where the ben­efits team says, ‘Sure, we can accommodate it’ — but the finance team mutters under breath about tax hit for the guy earning $160K who just rolled in Wednesday,” said one plan-administrator source. (Mock quote)

Strategic response: what you should do

• Check your wages: If you’re over $150K in Box 3 wages, get prepped for the Roth-only catch-up.

• Review your tax timing: For many professionals, it makes sense to evaluate the long-term payoff of Roth savings vs immediate tax deduction.

• Update your savings targets: With the increased limits, you can put more away — but you’ll need to decide whether to front-load with after-tax money or mix it up.

• Talk to your benefits/HR: Make sure your employer’s plan is ready, and that you’re clear about how it applies to your pay grade and tax status.

• Diversify your approach: Pre-tax, Roth, other vehicles (HSA, brokerage) — especially if you’re in a high-income corner of your industry and facing shifting rules.

Equity & workforce-trend angle

This rule also has a broader story. Many high-earning roles that reach the $150K threshold are disproportionately white and male. Meanwhile, workers who remain below the threshold may still rely on pre-tax options — but won’t get the catch-up flexibility either. So in a business-journal sense: rules meant to “level up” savings are also drawing new lines between income zones, career tiers and even sectors.

For the publishing-to-career audience of Lil’ Biz Journal — folks working above entry level or at major employers — this is a wake-up call: you’re in the tier where rules change first.

Bottom line

You’ve got more room to save next year. But if you’re a high-earner, the game’s changed: catch-up contributions now mean paying tax now, not later. That’s fine if you’re playing long-term, but it introduces a new consideration: are you saving in the smartest vehicle for your income and role? Check your employer’s plan. Run the numbers. Make sure you’re not caught off guard.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — In a move that’s turning heads across the state’s seafood scene, a Birmingham restaurant has just hauled in the top honor for best seafood in Alabama—beating heavy hitters along the Gulf Coast.

The award-winning eatery at 2015 2nd Ave. N. stood out in a crowded field where beachfront spots and tourist favorites typically dominate. This win not only underscores the restaurant’s culinary savvy but also signals an advent. It’s a signal to culinary heavyweights that the new joint in town is serious.

The shop only just arrived on the scene in March this year when chef-owners Rob and Emily McDaniel opened the doors downtown. In September, The New York Times included Bayonet in its 2025 restaurant list for the “50 Best Places in America Right Now.”

Bayonet is situated right next door to Helen, another McDaniel diner.

What this means for the industry
The upset comes at a time when Alabama’s restaurant industry is under increasing pressure to innovate—from face-masks to supply-chain hiccups—and this particular winner shows that fresh taste, smart sourcing and strong branding can still translate into big recognition.

The victory boosts Birmingham’s standing as a serious dining destination—not just for barbeque or Southern comfort fare but for seafood that can rival the Gulf Coast’s finest. It gives other inland restaurants a roadmap: focus on quality, local sourcing, memorable experience, and you’ll compete.

For the winning business, expect ripple effects: more reservations, heightened media attention, maybe even a premium pricing strategy or expanded footprint. The prestige also strengthens its bargaining power with suppliers—from local fishers to export channels—as the brand becomes associated with “best in state.”

The competitive context
Beating coastal spots is no small feat. Alabama’s shoreline—from Mobile Bay to Gulf Shores—features dozens of restaurants that serve up seafood straight from the water. Many of those businesses have long held the advantage of location and tourist traffic. But this inland nominee proved that flavour, presentation and consistent execution matter just as much.

Urban flavour meets classic seafood
What’s interesting is the vibe the Birmingham restaurant brings. It’s rooted in the community, not just a beach-town stopover. It carries an urban swagger—fresh fish, modern plating, a nod to tradition—but with style. That resonates with diners who want more than just fried shrimp and a view; they want an experience.

What to watch next

• Will this prompt more inland restaurants in Alabama (and the Southeast) to lean harder into seafood menus, investing in high-quality ingredients and elevated service?

• Will coastal spots respond—either upping their game or leaning into their location advantage even more?

• For the winner: scaling up while staying true to the quality that won the award will be key. If not careful, growth can dilute what made them special.

• From a business strategy perspective: this win offers a marketing hook, but how they leverage it will define future gains. Are they launching new offerings? Expanding hours? Capturing more private-event business?

Shikayla Fitzgerald is a traveling, small-business reporter who covers local business news in several cities around the U.S. She also serves as an adjunct marketing professor at Spelman College.

As education continues to be a frontline hot zone in the political war on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), Disney’s quietly launching a DEI initiative this week without calling it DEI. Their new DEI language also echoes that of Notre Dame and other institutions.

Less than a month into President Donald Trump’s second term, Disney rebranded its Reimagine Tomorrow website — its DEI information page — as MyDisneyToday, which focuses on attracting the “best, most talented” hires. The move was originally reported by Forbes and others as following a corporate-titan trend of abdicating previously held responsibilities to underrepresented perspectives in the workplace as seen from the likes of IBM and Meta.

Starting Monday, the mass media conglomerate embarks on an event series called Global Belonging Week according to a leaked email first reported by Business Insider’s James Faris. It includes voluntary livestream talks “designed to empower and inspire.”

There’s a fight to cancel the actual phrase “diversity, equity and inclusion” in what USA Today calls “the war on diversity.” For this very reason, Disney’s event itinerary uses the words “belonging” and “inclusion” without using the terms “diversity” or “equity.”

The Burbank, Calif.-based entertainment corporation pivot from policy and programs to events also removes the infrastructural footprint DEI once had in the company. The same practices of old no longer require a website, and “Diversity & Inclusion” is no longer included as a performance factor for executive compensation at Disney. Instead, “belonging” events come and go and leave little trace.

Education and government call similar plays.

Notre Dame just threw out any use of the all-but-cancelled phrase too according to Irish Rover writer Sienna Stephens. The Indiana-based university started the fall 2025 semester with a new name for its DEI Center: the “Sister Thea Bowman Center.” Its Office of Institutional Change also ironically changed — keeping true to its literal name by changing it — to the “Office of Belonging, Engagement and Mission,” which Disney’s new event series echoes. The institution positions these changes as a realignment with the Catholic mission and values, which theoretically lends DEI-ish initiatives a refuge in the church so to speak.

Saint Mary’s College employed the same logic, rebranding its Division for Inclusion and Equity to the “Center for Belonging.” UND’s sister school can continue inclusive initiatives as the proverbial Christian thing to do to dissociate it from what conservatives call the “woke movement.”

These moves are just the latest in a lengthy series of similar rebrands schools have made this year nationwide. The shift to specifically the word “Belonging” is organic and to be expected since it was a common substitute prior to Trump’s reelection.

This comes as conservative news outlet Accuracy In Media (AIM) reports that certain departments of the Raleigh, N.C. city government are protecting “radical DEI” programs from Executive Order 14151, whose title claims it ends “radical and wasteful DEI government programs.” AIM says certain departments provide a proverbial underground railroad to smuggle DEI programs out of the hot zone.

AIM’s yellow journalism serves its red audience a video in which their undercover reporter meets with Briana Scurry, African-American Asst. Dir. of Economic and Social Advancement for the city. A hidden camera barely captures her face as she appears to explain parts of her job.

Introducing herself as director of equity and inclusion, she tells the hidden camera, “We are certainly being strategic in the ways that we don’t wanna draw attention to ourselves, number one, right? But we certainly also wanna make sure that this work is as protected as possible.”

The orange gotcha comes when AIM President Adam Guillette marches up to Scurry’s office and corners her with questions about “pushing DEI in defiance of an executive order.” Righty sensationalism notwithstanding, it would stand to reason that some programs would shut down altogether if officials didn’t get creative about how to still sustain them in a political climate that liberals claim the right misunderstands.

E.O. 14151, which AIM cites in the video, doesn’t prohibit government DEI programs at the municipal level. It bans them at the federal level from both government entities and contractors. Moreover, executive orders don’t carry the force of law according to the Brookings Institution.

It’s an honest albeit performative social experiment.

DEI’s an honest mission, but one legit critique from the right remains that many practicing employers waste resources on it without pursuing that mission according to Dethra U. Giles — CEO at Atlanta-based consulting firm, ExecuPrep, and prolific TEDx Speaker. ExecuPrep helps companies overhaul ops like recruitment strategies, employee coaching and management. DEI’s just one of many areas of focus for her team when working with other companies.

Elite workplaces like Disney sometimes need instruction on how to genuinely commit to that honest mission. That’s why Giles spoke with Lil’ Biz Journal about the state of DEI from San Diego where she was addressing DEI for the Club Business Expo — an event organized by the Club Management Association of America (CMAA). The CMAA’s an industry group of elite country clubs all over the U.S. whose membership dues can cost individual constituents upwards of $30,000 a year.

“It begins to infiltrate every level of the organization if people are doing it properly. Now, what often happens is: you don’t have people that are doing it properly,” Giles told LBJ, and by that she means that “DEI is performative. ‘Hey, we got slapped on the hand because we recognize that our population — our staff, especially our leadership — does not reflect our actual population.’”

She provided the common example of a company whose staff is 15% Black but whose leadership is devoid of Black representation. Already, leadership doesn’t reflect population, so to some degree, there’s already a failure to navigate equitable, upward mobility among staff. Promoting from within is a requisite pipeline that should automatically preclude this disparity, and when it doesn’t, the organization’s imbalance generally gets increasingly inequitable.

So on one hand, the hiring process is key for establishing the right blend of differences among co-workers to make this possible, and the blend is only right if there’s still culture fit. On the other hand, this invokes another conservative critique that DEI yields unfair, anti-meritocratic hiring practices.

DETROIT, Mich. — As downtown Detroit staggers back to life, city officials and developers are eyeing a reboot of a familiar strategy: cash incentives to lure residents into the urban core. A program being discussed could offer thousands of dollars to new tenants who move into the blocks surrounding the Michigan Central Station neighborhood — signaling a shift that puts workforce housing, mobility and housing-density tradeoffs at the center of Detroit’s comeback script.

City-backed incentives once fueled Detroit’s early-2010s resurgence. Now, the potential new plan is simpler and faster: move here, get paid. The amount under discussion hasn’t been finalized, but the program’s architecture is pitched as a refundable cash grant tied to lease or purchase. The aim: fill vacant units, reduce commuter distance for downtown workers, and stabilize the residential base that supports retail, hospitality and service trade firms nearby.

Backdrop: The workforce/home-corridor connection

In Detroit’s core, many service, retail and hospitality jobs — sectors still dominated by employees from historically marginalized communities — remain tied to long commutes. When the ground-floor economy loses residents, operations in restaurants, front-desk hospitality, building maintenance and retail chains feel it first.

A successful cash-move-in program could feed those frontline workers into walking distance of downtown trade hubs. But if incentives only land in luxury apartments or target high-income professionals, the trade-specific benefit may slip.

What’s changed — and why the timing matters

Earlier iterations of Detroit’s incentives focused on broad downtown zones or home-buyers — efforts that yielded growth, but often attracted higher-income households with little connection to the day-to-day workforce. This time, the approach appears more function-driven: tourism, service, tech-office tenants all need employees who don’t vanish on peak commute days.

At the same time, Detroit still wrestles with rental-market pressures, housing cost escalations, and infrastructure gaps. The “residential density first” argument—popular in urban planning—asserts that rooftops create the economic gravity that supports retail, transit, and service-industry jobs. A cash incentive boosts that density, but only if the units are reachable and affordable for the workforce that powers downtown commerce.

The potential trade-off: Workforce benefit or gentrification risk?

For frontline workers — many of whom are women and people of color — the prospect of shorter commutes and shorter hours on the road is real. But the incentive might also amplify the very problem it seeks to fix: new residents driving up local rents, displacing lower-wage workers. Housing research is clear: when incentives don’t include affordability clauses, they can accelerate gentrification and staff-turnover in service jobs.

What happens next

City officials say a pilot for the cash-move program could launch as early as 2026, pending approval of zoning tweaks and budget allocations. Developers are in discussions about deed-restrictions, workforce-income eligibility, and whether the grant includes purchase options or only rental. For industries reliant on local labor — retail shops, restaurants, cleaning contractors, hospitality services — the stakes are high: this isn’t just about living downtown. It’s about stabilizing the labor pool that keeps downtown commerce moving.

If all goes well, Detroit’s new model could become a blueprint for other metros wrestling with workforce-commute trade-offs. If it stumbles, it may serve as another cautionary tale about incentives that reshape neighborhoods but leave front-line staffing behind.

Bottom line

Detroit is offering a fresh incentive bet to address a simple truth: you can’t build a downtown boom unless people are living near it. But if that move doesn’t include the workers who underpin the economy, it may echo past promises—and the churn that came with them.

LIVINGSTON, Miss. — The long-gestating dreams for the township of Livingston appear to be stirring back to life. A Mississippi developer has purchased major parcels in the 4,000-acre mixed-use project and is hinting that housing could be the next move — raising hopes that the stalled vision for the community north of Jackson may finally gain traction.

Local developer Todd Sandridge recently acquired the undeveloped land from the original owner of the Town of Livingston project on Madison County’s busiest corridor. Citing public filings, the Clarion Ledger reports Sandridge and his team now control “substantially all remaining property” within the master-planned site. His next step: determine whether the next phase will include residential-unit construction beyond the originally announced retail and entertainment components.

The original development — launched in the early 2010s by developer David Landrum and others — envisioned an 1800s-style town square anchored by restaurants, shops, and offices. But the 2008 financial crisis, developer disputes and bankruptcy filings derailed the project’s momentum. With the fresh ownership change, local stakeholders say the timing may be right for housing to anchor the site’s next chapter.

Background and site context
The Town of Livingston sits at the intersection of Mississippi 463 and Old Cedars Lane in northern Madison County — about 20 minutes from Jackson. In 2014, the developer Landrum described the project as “a village for lively gathering” with a general store, mercantile and office space already under development. But despite early site work and anchor leases, the actual housing component never materialized, and in 2024 parts of the property entered bankruptcy.

With the new acquisition, however, Sandridge is reportedly reviewing zoning, utility plans and phasing options. He’s said to be having conversations with Madison County officials about potential tax-increment financing or public-private partnerships to fund infrastructure for residential development.

What’s changed — and what’s still needed
Unlike the original retail-led model, several local developers and real-estate analysts now argue that housing must lead if the site is to become a self-sustaining community. With booming demand across the Jackson metro for new homes and rental inventory, the refreshed plan could align with broader trends. Yet key questions linger: will the new homes be affordable for middle-income families or priced at the luxury end? Will amenities materialize concurrently to support residents? And how will the new owner address the legacy infrastructure and financing shortfalls from the earlier phase?

Why it matters for the region
If successful, the revitalized project could shift growth patterns in Madison County, offering a new suburban-style node with walkable design, mixed-use amenities and targeted housing. For local workers — many commuting into Jackson or the expanding biotech corridor — it could provide shorter commutes and newer housing stock. From a trade-specific perspective, home-builders, utility contractors and local supply-chain firms may finally see orders materializing after years of stalled promises.

But if housing doesn’t happen — or if it is priced out of reach — the site could remain a ghost of potential. The story of Livingston’s development is already one of ambition interrupted. That makes the stakes high not just for one developer, but for a region banking on growth, equity and smart infrastructure.

The bottom line
With new ownership and a renewed nod to housing, the Town of Livingston is at a crossroads: Will it rise as the suburban village it was promised, or sit in limbo for yet another decade? If the next phase includes the right mix of homes and amenities, it could finally deliver. If not, the latest investor may simply inherit the same challenges the original team could not overcome.

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