Working to eliminate the tariff and non-tariff barriers that impede the industry’s ability to trade freely and create economic opportunities in the US and abroad, The United States Fashion Industry Association (USFIA) released its second US Fashion Industry Benchmarking Study, a survey of executives from 30 leading fashion and apparel brands, retailers, importers, and wholesalers. 89 per cent of respondents showed optimism about the five-year outlook for the US fashion industry. Most of them are concerned about increasing production or sourcing costs, but they expect increases to be more modest this year. Key findings in the study focused on the need to renew AGOA as soon as possible and for a long term, as well as the need to abandon the strict yarn-forward Rule of Origin in future Free Trade Agreements and preference programmes in order for companies to take advantage of them to help alleviate those worrisome costs. 90 per cent of respondents report having more than 100 employees in their companies, while 60 per cent of respondents report having more than 1,000 employees, suggesting that the findings well reflect the views of the most influential players in the US fashion industry.
Julia K. Hughes, President of USFIA said, “We’ve still got a lot of work to do, but I’m pleased to find that our advocacy activities align with our members’ priorities, and the results will help us in our work to convince policymakers of the need to eliminate trade barriers to create jobs and economic growth.”
