Gail Strickler

Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Textiles

Gail W. Strickler, AUSTR for Textiles and Apparel, joins USTR after almost 30 years in the textile and apparel industry. Ms. Strickler is responsible for supervising negotiations affecting textile and apparel products, advising Ambassador Ron Kirk on textile and apparel trade policy matters and working to expand the industry's access to foreign markets.

Ms. Strickler worked for Saxon Textile Corp from 1980 -2007 serving ultimately as its President and CEO until it was acquired by Patriarch Group in 2007 and became a division of Duro Textile LLC., where she served as Vice President of the Global Apparel Division.

Prior to joining USTR, Ms. Strickler served as the Assoc. Director of The Institute for Textile and Apparel Product Safety (I.T.A.P.S.) at Philadelphia University (the former Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science) where she oversaw textile research and development programs for the Institute, and developed sustainability and environmental strategy programs for brands and retailers.

Ms. Strickler served as president of the Textiles Distributors Association for five years. She served on the board of directors of the National Council of Textile Organizations from its inception in 2004-2006 as a member of its Trade Policy committee. She has been a board member for the USDA Cotton Board since 2002, serving as Chairman of the Textile Research Committee. She has served on the board of directors at the Fashion Institute of Technology's Education Foundation since 2004 and its executive committee for the past three years. Strickler received her B.A. from Clark University and completed coursework in Textile Technology and Textile Chemistry from the Fashion Institute of Technology.