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  "path": "/small-business/2026/02/07/lush-wine-spirits-roscoe-village-einhorn-tariffs",
  "publishedAt": "2026-02-07T12:00:00.000Z",
  "site": "https://chicago.suntimes.com",
  "textContent": "<div class=\"RichTextSidebarModule Enhancement\" data-module data-align-center><a class=\"AnchorLink\" id=\"module-df0000\" name=\"module-df0000\"></a> <div class=\"RichTextModule-items RichTextBody\"><b><i>Editor’s Note: </i></b><i>Last year, a new presidential administration stepped in with plans to disrupt the way companies do business through new policies, an effort to spur growth.</i><br><br><i>To help gauge the administration’s impact, the Chicago Sun-Times reached out to 10 Chicago area businesses in January 2025 and shared their plans and concerns for the future.</i><br><br><i>We’re now circling back, 12 months later, to see how they’ve fared.</i></div> </div><p>When President Donald Trump moved back into the White House in January 2025, one of Mitch Einhorn's biggest worries was increased tariffs.</p><p>A year later, the co-owner of <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/small-business/2025/01/31/tariffs-labor-property-taxes-swirl-around-lush-wine-spirits\" >Lush Wine & Spirits</a> said tariffs are still top of mind.</p><p>Since 2005, Lush has positioned itself as a friendly, accessible wine shop paired with a cozy bistro, with locations in Roscoe Village and West Town. Customers can buy a bottle and uncork it in the restaurant, or they can try a glass with dinner and buy a bottle to take home.</p><p>Menu items range from imported caviar service to sandwiches and seafood. Brunch items include avocado fried egg toast, Georgian cheese bread and brioche French toast.</p><p>With so many imported items, the business is especially vulnerable to the rapid-fire tariffs Trump has announced, then often pulled back, throughout the first year of his second term.</p><p>\"It's just so arbitrary,\" Einhorn, 63, said.</p><div class=\"RichTextSidebarModule Enhancement\" data-module data-align-center><a class=\"AnchorLink\" id=\"module-d50000\" name=\"module-d50000\"></a> <div class=\"RichTextModule-items RichTextBody\"><h4>Lush Wine & Spirits</h4><b>About:</b> Boutique wine and spirit store, as well as restaurant and wine bar<br><br><b>Neighborhood:</b> Roscoe Village and West Town<br><b>Owners:</b> Mitch and Cliff Einhorn<br><b>Founded:</b> 2005<br><b>Staff size:</b> 15<br><b>Estimated annual sales:</b> More than $1 million</div> </div><p>Since August, U.S. importers of European wines have been paying 15% tariffs. The taxes are typically passed down to consumers in the form of higher prices.</p><p>Last month, Trump threatened 10% tariffs — rising to 25% by June — on products from eight European countries unless the U.S. was allowed to purchase Greenland. Shortly after, he threatened 200% tariffs on French wine and champagne after France's President Emmanuel Macron snubbed an invitation to join Trump's new Board of Peace, comprised of a group of world leaders, who can pay a $1 billion admission fee for a lifetime membership, with Trump as chairman for as long as he likes.</p><p>The wildly-fluctuating tariffs were heartburn-inducing for Einhorn, who said he had orders in transit from France when the 200% tariff was suggested.</p><p>Within a week, Trump backed off on Greenland-related threats and has stopped mentioning 200% tariffs on French imports. But Einhorn said the unpredictability is harmful. He decided to pause further purchases until things settle down.</p><p>He also worries about people whose livelihoods are connected to imports, such as port workers, truckers and retail employees.</p><p>\"When you think about how many hands touch a product, ... it impacts a lot of people,\" he said.</p><p>Einhorn wonders whether the president realizes the downstream harm that such threats can cause.</p><p>\"When was the last time he went out to eat and picked up the bill?\" he said.</p><div class=\"Enhancement\" data-align-center> <div class=\"Enhancement-item\" data-crop=\"\"> <figure class=\"Figure\"><a class=\"AnchorLink\" id=\"image-a50000\" name=\"image-a50000\"></a> <picture data-crop=\"medium\"> <source type=\"image/webp\" width=\"490\" height=\"275\" data-srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/a3622eb/2147483647/strip/true/crop/7008x3933+0+157/resize/490x275!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fad%2Fbf%2F46db2f1a4b57befc478191a76157%2Fbizprofiles-012625-83.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/553af0b/2147483647/strip/true/crop/7008x3933+0+157/resize/980x550!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fad%2Fbf%2F46db2f1a4b57befc478191a76157%2Fbizprofiles-012625-83.jpg 2x\" data-lazy-load=\"true\" srcset=\"data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=\" /> <source width=\"490\" height=\"275\" data-srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/69fc4e5/2147483647/strip/true/crop/7008x3933+0+157/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fad%2Fbf%2F46db2f1a4b57befc478191a76157%2Fbizprofiles-012625-83.jpg\" data-lazy-load=\"true\" srcset=\"data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=\" /> <img class=\"Image\" alt=\"The dining area of Lush Wine & Spirits' Roscoe Village location.\" srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/69fc4e5/2147483647/strip/true/crop/7008x3933+0+157/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fad%2Fbf%2F46db2f1a4b57befc478191a76157%2Fbizprofiles-012625-83.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/1fdcb3b/2147483647/strip/true/crop/7008x3933+0+157/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fad%2Fbf%2F46db2f1a4b57befc478191a76157%2Fbizprofiles-012625-83.jpg 2x\" width=\"490\" height=\"275\" data-src=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/69fc4e5/2147483647/strip/true/crop/7008x3933+0+157/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fad%2Fbf%2F46db2f1a4b57befc478191a76157%2Fbizprofiles-012625-83.jpg\" data-lazy-load=\"true\" src=\"data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=\" > </picture> <div class=\"Figure-content\"><figcaption class=\"Figure-caption\"><p>The dining area of Lush Wine & Spirits’ Roscoe Village location.</p></figcaption><span class=\"line\"></span><div class=\"Figure-credit\"><p>Pat Nabong/Sun-Times file</p></div></div> </figure> </div> </div><p>Food prices have also been another sore spot over the past year, he said.</p><p>One of Einhorn's joys is creating new menu items, like the seasoned and poached scrambled eggs for brunch.</p><p>But he said ingredient prices remain high and it puts pressure on him to raise prices, which he doesn’t want to do.</p><p>\"How do you fix your pricing of products and services to guests? How do guests afford that?\" he said.</p><p>One triumph in 2025 was getting a building permit to expand the Roscoe Village location at 2232 W. Roscoe St. Sales there were up by 1% over 2024, while the West Town space, 1412 W. Chicago Ave., saw sales dip by 9%.</p><p>But the Roscoe Village expansion comes with a hurdle — rising construction costs. Einhorn said he's working on a math problem: Will increasing its footprint to four storefronts, with a bigger kitchen, more seating and more store shelves, translate to more customers and revenue?</p><p>He said owning a small business comes with hassles but it can also be exhilarating.</p><p>He's working with a vineyard in Washington that's producing a white, rosé and two red wines exclusively for the store. He’s also working on a longer-term project with a winemaker in France.</p><p>And he's writing new recipes, as always.</p><p>Einhorn said his goal is to make Lush the best place to buy a bottle and eat a reasonably-priced gourmet meal.</p><p>\"If you stop learning and doing new stuff, you cease to exist,\" he said.</p><div class=\"PageListA\" data-module ><a class=\"AnchorLink\" id=\"list-130001\" name=\"list-130001\"></a><div class=\"PageList-header\" > <div class=\"PageList-header-title-wrap\" > <div class=\"PageList-header-title\"> More in this series </div> </div> </div> <div class=\"PageListA-items\"> <div class=\"PageListA-items-row\"> <div class=\"PageListA-items-column\"> <div class=\"PageListA-items-item\"> <div class=\"PagePromoC\"> <div class=\"PagePromo-media\"><a class=\"Link\" aria-label=\"Evergreen Real Estate Group found growth out West, despite concerns about economy in 2025\" 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width=\"840\" height=\"555\" data-srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/05fbc44/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5821x3846+0+0/resize/840x555!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F57%2F03%2F7e43b4224c8185c1a752887490b8%2Fbizprofiles-03xx25-4-1.jpg\" data-lazy-load=\"true\" srcset=\"data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI1NTVweCIgd2lkdGg9Ijg0MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=\" /> <img class=\"Image\" alt=\"Evergreen Real Estate Group CEO Steve Rappin stands by his desk, facing the camera and smiling\" srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/05fbc44/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5821x3846+0+0/resize/840x555!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F57%2F03%2F7e43b4224c8185c1a752887490b8%2Fbizprofiles-03xx25-4-1.jpg 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  "title": "Happy times at Lush Wine & Spirits, if not for tariff uncertainty",
  "updatedAt": "2026-02-07T12:00:02.198Z"
}