US apparel sector sees spike in domestic manufacturing

“Following the U.S. footwear industry’s surge in domestic manufacturing in 2011, the U.S. apparel industry followed suit with its own spike in domestic manufacturing,” said AAFA President and CEO Kevin M. Burke.

“In 2011, domestic apparel manufacturing grew 11.1 percent and, for the first time ever, domestic production’s share of the U.S. market grew, driving import penetration in the U.S. apparel market below 98 percent.  Despite continued shifts away from China as a sourcing option, China remains the largest supplier of apparel to the U.S. market supplying nearly 33.2 percent of apparel sold in the United States.”

“With more than 97 percent of apparel sold in the United States being made globally, trade remains an important issue for the U.S. apparel and footwear industry,” said Burke.  “In fact, nearly three million U.S. apparel industry workers and more than one million U.S. footwear industry workers count on trade for their jobs.”

Key Facts from ApparelStats 2012:

• U.S. apparel consumption by volume for 2011 dropped 5.3 percent to 19.4 billion garments.  While consumption dropped slightly over the significant gains made in 2010, the decrease in consumption does not represent a return to the recession-level consumption experienced in 2008 and 2009.
• While U.S. apparel consumption slightly declined in 2011, the value of sales grew by 4.9 percent to $283.7 billion at retail.  This growth reflects both the increase in retail prices driven by higher supply chain costs, including increases in materials, labor, and transportation, as well as consumers returning to purchases of apparel at higher price-points coming out of the recession.
• 97.7 percent of apparel sold in the United States is made internationally, a 0.3 percent decline from 2010, which represents the first-ever decline in import penetration, or the amount of the U.S. apparel market supplied by imports.
• China now represents the number 1 global market for U.S. cotton exports, the number 2 global market for U.S. yarn exports, and the number 3 global market for U.S. fabric exports.
• On average, every American, including every man, woman, and child in the United States spent $910 on more than 62 garments in 2011.
• Americans, on average, continue to spend an ever smaller percentage of their household income to buy more clothes.

The American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) is the national trade association representing apparel, footwear and other sewn products companies, and their suppliers, which compete in the global market. 

American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA)