🧠 Food for thought

Implications, context, and why it matters.

Logitech began reshaping its supply chain before the Iran conflict, pushed first by U.S. tariffs

• Before the current Middle East crisis, Logitech had already started reworking its supply chain after tariffs from the Trump administration 1.
• The company has been shifting production out of China. It wants to cut the share of U.S.-bound goods made there from about 40% to 10% by the end of calendar 2025 1.
• It spread manufacturing across Vietnam, Taiwan, and Thailand 1. It also added Malaysia plus Mexico to soften the hit from higher U.S. import duties. That work gets harder when Middle East conflict risk disrupts shipping or lifts cargo insurance costs 1, 2.

The shift from “just-in-time” to “just-in-case” is adding strain to logistics and inventory

• Companies are moving away from lean “just-in-time” supply chains, which keep inventory low. They are leaning toward “just-in-case” models that carry more stock because disruption and geopolitical risk keep rising 3.
• That approach locks up more working capital in inventory plus warehousing. It also lands as logistics costs are about 30% higher, while rerouting around the Cape of Good Hope adds at least two weeks to transit times 3.
• Another problem is lost predictability. Route changes during transit can throw off planning and make reporting less accurate 2.