It’s almost the Fourth of July – a day of parades, barbecue and, of course, fireworks. But while parades and barbecues are still very popular, shockingly, this year fireworks are less so.

Imports of fireworks reached a peak in 2022 of almost US$600 million, according to the U.S. International Trade Commission. But today, just two years later, my estimate is that fireworks imports will only reach about $350 million in 2024. What happened to one of U.S.’s favorite Fourth of July activities?

The answer, I believe, lies in the COVID-19 pandemic, which transformed the economy as billions of people around the world were stuck at home. E-commerce boomed, as did sales of alcohol, indoor exercise equipment and cleaning products. However, this boom was followed by a bust for many products, as people switched back to pre-pandemic buying habits.

This appears to be what happened with fireworks.

I am a business school professor who has followed the fireworks industry for years. In the U.S., fireworks are a multibillion-dollar industry. They’re primarily........

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