Marc Federbush at Crain’s Middle-Market Roundtable

From tariffs to talent retention, New York City executives have plenty of issues on their plates. Here’s how they’re navigating past these difficult roadblocks.

“When I ask our clients what’s keeping them up at night, uncertainty is the number-one response,” said Marc Federbush, a partner at accounting and advisory firm Anchin. “Uncertainty makes it challenging for a business to plan and effectuate growth.”

But an uncertain trade environment and fast-changing regulatory landscape don’t have to be negatives. Instead, they can offer companies a chance to rethink, refine and even reinvent themselves. “Every time there’s this kind of uncertainty, I think it should cause people to see where there are opportunities,” said Federbush. “What’s going to make you different and better than your competition? Because if the competition does not do it and you are doing it, you’re going to win.”

In a recent roundtable discussion on middle-market business issues sponsored by City National Bank and the custom division of Crain’s New York Business, Federbush and executives from a range of industries weighed in on the challenges they’ve faced in 2019 and discussed the strategies they—and their clients—are using to navigate today’s uncertain corporate environment. They also revealed some of the strategies they’re using to protect their companies from what-if scenarios.

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Global issues such as tariffs, trade and even geopolitics are some of what’s keeping business executives awake. Federbush, who leads Anchin’s fashion group, specializes in working with garment manufacturers. He says many of his firm’s clients are considering new sourcing partners to reduce the impact tariffs have on costs. “What I see is a lot of companies moving away from China and sourcing someplace else, whether it’s Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Vietnam or wherever,” he said.

Read the complete article by Crain’s New York Business.