Garment Industry in U.S.A

The apparel industry in USA is one of the largest in the world. It is also one of the largest markets in terms of consumption. In the early 2000s, the industry faced problems in terms of increased imports from China and a weak domestic economy. China has been one of the major exporters of garments to USA and remains the largest garment supplier to the country.

Apparel imports grew 13.0 percent to $6.1 billion in January 2007, compared to January 2006. China is the largest apparel supplier to the country, with a share of 33% of total US apparel imports in January 2007, this means an increase of 12.6% up from a share of 20.4 % in January 2006. Other countries from where garments are imported in the US are:

• Bangladesh
• Indonesia
• Pakistan

Technological Advancement
Manufacturers in the men's clothing industry have been using more automation and sophisticated machinery for ensuring higher quality apparel to consumers and also for closely monitoring their needs and requirements.

Large manufacturers are investing huge amounts of capital in new machinery for improving efficiency, but as it is a labour-intensive industry, the cost of finished garments is quite high as compared to Asian countries like China, India etc.

Continuous efforts have been made in the last decade for:

• Shortening production cycles
• Reducing inventories
• Improving productivity
• Avoid overstocking
• Using computers for tracking inventory, sales, and consumer response