Fashion Meets Business: Paid Tariffs? How Fashion Brands Can Prepare for Refund Claims FULL TUTORIAL

Paid tariffs on imported goods? Your fashion brand may have money to recover. In this AIMS360 Fashion Technology Podcast episode, Shahrooz Kohan sits down with Kimberly Killgore and Jerry Williams from Krieger Worldwide / Norman Krieger, Inc. to break down one of the biggest topics impacting fashion importers right now: IEPA tariff refunds, CAPE filings, and what brands need to review before filing. For many apparel, footwear, accessory, and textile brands, tariffs have been treated as just another cost of doing business. But after IEPA tariffs were ruled not lawfully collected, many importers may now have an opportunity to pursue refunds on eligible entries. Krieger explains what changed, how CAPE works inside the ACE portal, why many importers may not even have ACE access set up yet, and what fashion brands should be reviewing now — including HTS codes, country of origin, eligible entries, liquidation status, refund tracking, and import records across brokers. Whether you are a fashion brand owner, operations leader, finance team, or importer of record, this conversation will help you understand what steps to take now and why clean product, sourcing, and import data matters more than ever. What you’ll learn in this episode: What IEPA tariffs were and why refunds may now be available What CAPE is and how it connects to the ACE portal Why fashion importers are especially impacted due to high SKU counts, multiple origins, materials, HTS codes, and complex supply chains Why ACE access is one of the first things importers should verify How to begin identifying eligible entries Why your customs broker and internal systems both matter What happens after a CAPE filing is submitted How brands should prepare for refunds, reporting, and future tariff uncertainty Key timestamps: 00:00 — Introduction: Why tariff refunds matter for fashion brands 01:11 — Meet Kimberly Killgore and Jerry Williams from Krieger Worldwide 02:32 — What IEPA tariffs were and how they impacted importers 03:21 — Why IEPA tariffs were ruled not lawfully collected 03:46 — What CAPE is and why it matters 04:37 — How ACE connects to CAPE refund filings 05:06 — Why many importers have never used the ACE portal 06:15 — Why electronic refunds must be set up in ACE 06:41 — How brands can start auditing refund opportunities 07:04 — Using ACE to review import history and broker data 08:10 — Who can file CAPE refunds: importer of record vs. customs broker 09:42 — Why fashion importers face extra complexity 10:22 — HTS codes, country of origin, product details, and audit readiness 11:32 — How AIMS360 helps centralize product, sourcing, HTS, vendor, and import data 13:39 — First steps fashion importers should take now 14:46 — What happens after CAPE filing 15:16 — Refund status, rejected entries, ACE reporting, and Treasury processing 16:35 — Expected refund timelines and monitoring reports 17:40 — Krieger’s experience filing multi-million-dollar refund claims 18:23 — Refunds already beginning to hit importer bank accounts 19:04 — Why brands need a tariff contingency plan 20:16 — Future tariff uncertainty and Section 301 investigations 20:52 — Why operational visibility matters in today’s sourcing environment 22:03 — Closing thoughts from Krieger Worldwide About AIMS360: AIMS360 is fashion business software built specifically for apparel, footwear, accessories, beauty, and lifestyle brands. Our apparel ERP helps brands manage styles, inventory, production, purchase orders, wholesale, EDI, shipping, invoicing, accounting, reporting, integrations, and more in one connected system. For fashion importers, clean operational data matters. AIMS360 helps centralize the information brands need to manage sourcing, vendors, product details, HTS codes, country of origin, inventory, landed costs, and reporting — giving teams better visibility when navigating complex compliance, tariff, and refund conversations. Book a demo with AIMS360: https://www.aims360.com/demo Get the guide: Want help opening and navigating your ACE account? Fill out the form below to get your copy of: “A Guidebook for Opening and Navigating an ACE Account” https://1onyc.share.hsforms.com/2JaFR... Disclaimer: This episode is for informational purposes only and should not be considered legal, tax, or customs compliance advice. Please consult your customs broker, legal advisor, or trade compliance professional to evaluate your specific situation. #AIMS360 #FashionTechnology #TariffRefunds #IEPA #CAPEFiling #ACEPortal #FashionImporters #ApparelERP #KriegerWorldwide #CustomsCompliance #FashionBusiness