Our hearts go out to those who have been directly impacted by Hurricane Sandy. We are saddened as we continue to hear stories of those without power, significant damage to homes, and other adverse consequences of the storm.  The images we see on television are devastating.

The AAFA Apparel Foundation, AAFA's charitable arm, has started coordinating with disaster relief organizations to offer assistance to those directly impacted by Sandy. If your organization is able to provide new product donations to these organizations, especially children's items like diapers and other basics, please reach out directly to the organizations below.  

Click here to learn more about donating products >>

As with any disaster or emergency, we are closely monitoring this situation and are offering assistance to any AAFA members affected. If AAFA can be of any assistance to your organization during this time, please do not hesitate to call on us. 

Last night's debate focused on foreign policy. And, besides the two huge detours into domestic issues, we learned that there really isn't much daylight between the two candidates on the major foreign policy issues of the day, including Libya, the Middle East, Syria, Egypt, and the U.S.'s role in the world, Israel, and Iran. The differences, if there were any at all, occurred in the form of subtle nuances, mostly in the tepid retort of "I would have taken action sooner."

Last night’s debate, however, offered two really good things.  The first, which has really been absent in the previous debates, were the great quips and zingers the candidates rolled out to try to accentuate the few differences they had on foreign policy.

Right out of the box, on Obama's policy in the Middle East, Governor Mitt Romney said, "We can't kill our way out of this mess."

Obama later returned the favor. On Romney's criticism of military cuts, Obama quipped, "You mentioned the Navy, for example, and that we have fewer ships than we did in 1916. Well, Governor, we also have fewer horses and bayonets, because the nature of our military's changed. We have these things called aircraft carriers, where planes land on them. We have these ships that go underwater, nuclear submarines."

Then, on Iran, and the beginning of Obama's term, Romney retorted, "I think they saw weakness where they had expected to find American strength" and continued by calling Obama's first Middle East trip "an apology tour."

However, Obama got the final word of the debate, at least on the good zingers. On a brief detour from the discussion on China, Obama referred to the auto bailout, saying "If we had taken your advice Governor Romney about our auto industry, we'd be buying cars from China instead of selling cars to China."  And then, at the end of another tangent from the China issue, after an exchange on who was telling the truth, Obama quipped, "Governor Romney, you keep on trying to, you know airbrush history here."

The second, and perhaps more important, good thing about this debate was the opportunity to hear each candidate's view and vision on the U.S.-China relationship. In this case, we heard some good things...and some not so good things.

Governor Romney started out by saying the China was really no different than us.  They want a stable world with no war and no protectionism. He even held out the hope that China could be a partner to the United States in these efforts, if China was responsible. But then Governor Romney repeated his commitment to cite China as a manipulator on Day One of his administration. Asked whether this declaration would cause a trade war, Governor Romney said a trade war would hurt China more than the United States, implying that, therefore a trade war would not happen.

Then, Romney went on a tangent, interchanging complaints about the growing U.S. trade deficit with China with highlighted concerns with China stealing technology and conducting rampant counterfeiting. With apparel, footwear, and fashion accessories consistently ranking in the top five most counterfeit products seized at U.S. ports, and with most of that product coming from China, we applaud Governor Romney for highlighting the scourge of counterfeiting, but we would have wanted to hear solutions to resolving this critical issue instead focusing on currency.

Meanwhile, President Obama, after going off on "off shore tax breaks" and then going into a tangent on the auto industry bailout, touted his record on enforcement, including the Chinese tire case. President Obama pivoted by noting that China's currency was at its strongest point since 1993.

President Obama then pointed out that U.S. exports to China have doubled since he took office. We in the U.S. apparel and footwear industry, the four million Americans that help you get dressed every day, know this all too well. As we noted last week, China has been the fastest AAFA's growing market for U.S.-made and U.S.-branded apparel and footwear over the last few years. And, as we highlighted in recent publication of AAFA's ApparelStats 2012, China has run the trifecta for our industry. China is now the #1 market for U.S. cotton exports, the #2 market for U.S. yarn exports, and the #3 market for U.S. fabric exports.

Finally, while not mentioning it by name, President Obama touted the negotiation of the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Free Trade Agreement. President Obama touted "...organizing trade relations with countries other than China" not only as an economic bulwark in the region against China, but as an example to China of the benefits they would receive if they abided by international trade rules. While we applaud President Obama for raising the issue, it would have been great if he actually mentioned the TPP by name.

So, in the end, we saw two candidates debate for 90 minutes on foreign policy where the only real differences were the zingers. However, we did see a clear difference on each candidate's approach to China.

With last night's debate, we are done. The four debates (see debate 1, debate 2, and vice presidential debate recaps) have offered voters a clear vision of each candidate on the issues that matter. Now, it's your turn.  Step up and vote.

The American people finally got what they deserved last night, a real debate between the two candidates who want to lead our great country for the next four years. The debate was spirited on both sides and Candy Crowley served as a strong moderator. Viewers had the opportunity to review the resumes of both candidates, both the good and the bad, through the questions asked in the debate's town hall format by the audience and by Ms. Crowley. In the end, 11 “undecided” voters had the opportunity to ask President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney the questions that mattered most to them on issues ranging from the economy, energy, and taxes, to pay equality, assault weapons, and Libya. Both sides had "zingers" and both made statements that will be talked about a lot in the coming days and weeks.

And yes, we were thrilled to see a real discussion for the first time on how trade is key to the economic growth of the United States.  Interestingly, compared to some of their other positions, the two didn’t carve out much difference in this key area.

President Obama talked about the need to double exports and how he "signed" free trade agreements (FTAs). Governor Romney focused on the need to expand trade with Latin America and the need to sign new FTAs with the region.  Frankly, we could have listened to these two gentleman discuss expanding markets and promoting exports all evening.

Unfortunately, each candidate also spent considerable time slamming China as they sought to outdo each other by sounding tougher with respect to this bilateral relationship.  President Obama highlighted his efforts to impose trade remedies, such as those on tires, while Governor Romney restated his pledge to declare China a “currency manipulator” on his first day in office should he be elected.  Perhaps such talk lends itself to digestible populist sound-bites.  We feel it signals a misplaced emphasis which could end up doing more harm than good to our complicated trade partnership with China.   Our hope is that the victorious candidate will approach our trade relations with China smartly and with caution.

Much of the trade talk also focused on stopping the "outsourcing" of jobs and bringing manufacturing back to the United States; but the 4 million U.S. workers in the apparel and footwear industry know better than anyone that impact of trade goes far beyond just exports, outsourcing and manufacturing. The reality is that both exports AND IMPORTS support American workers, families, businesses and the economy.

Regrettably, neither candidate acknowledged this fact. Faced with a follow-up question from Ms. Crowley on how to bring the manufacturing of the iPhone back to the United States, neither candidate seized the opportunity to praise Apple and the thousands of other American companies for creating and sustaining millions of high-wage, high-skilled jobs not in China, but here in the United States. Instead, both candidates chose to focus on creating a "fair playing field" and lamenting the loss of those manufacturing jobs.

As the millions of Americans who help you get dressed this morning know first hand, a fast-growing number of academic studies demonstrate that the real value of the iPhone, and clothes and shoes, does not end with the actual assembly of the product, but also extends to the design, R&D, software, sourcing, compliance, logistics, marketing and sales efforts of those iPhones, pants or boots. And just like it is in our industry, those good jobs aren't based in China, but are located here in the United States.

Finally, we were delighted to see President Obama sport a red tie and Governor Romney wear a blue one – in an accidental, or perhaps deliberate, nod to the opposing parties’ political colors.  Perhaps we can hope that Mssrs. Obama and Romney coordinated this political cross dressing, suggesting that each one of them helped get the other dressed yesterday?

In any event, we applaud both candidates for rising to the occasion in last night's debate, giving voters a clear perspective, even on trade. Please make your choice by exercising your right, and responsibility, to vote on November 6th.

The two candidates for Vice President, Democratic incumbent Joe Biden and Republican hopeful Congressman Paul Ryan (WI), did everything possible to distinguish themselves from the other in their only debate before the November election.   And if that was their ultimate individual goals, they both most certainly succeeded. Last night’s debate presented voters with what was probably the most clear and most stark contrast in visions between the two candidates for the presidency we have seen so far in this campaign.

Last night’s debate was also probably the best, and most substantive, debate seen in recent memory. Regardless of whether people agreed with what the two vice presidential candidates said, voters should feel confident that either candidate could much more than ably fill the position that is only a heartbeat away from the presidency.

And the success of last night’s debate was not only due to the participants, but also thanks to the moderator, ABC News Reporter Martha Raddatz, who moderated the debate with aplomb.

Regrettably, however, the debate presented yet another missed opportunity to address the many of real issues affecting U.S. businesses and U.S. workers, including the four million U.S. workers that help you get dressed every day. With the debate focused on the foreign policy and the U.S. economy, neither candidate seized the moment to talk about the importance of trade and how trade not only helps U.S. workers, U.S. consumers, U.S. businesses, and the U.S. economy, but also furthers our foreign policy goals by providing economic freedom and stability to other parts of the world.

And with the debate taking place at Centre College in the great State of Kentucky, the two candidates failed to address the very real job crisis in the debate’s own backyard, where Federal prisoners working for pennies an hour for the U.S. government’s own Federal Prison Industries (FPI) program threatened to shut down two Kentucky clothing factories and take jobs away from hardworking and law-abiding American taxpayers.

As with most debates, the debate had its moments of the candidates making witty remarks, and inappropriate laughs, but the two candidates also set a very high bar for their bosses on the tickets when they take the stage again next week in New York state.

Now that the debate is over, political pundits and media outlets will begin to dissect the debate to engage in their own discussions to determine the victor. At the end of the day, though, pundits won’t decide who is our nation’s next President and Vice President. That question will be answered by the American public at the polls on November 6^th.  With the election three weeks away and with two more Presidential debates in the offing, every day presents a potential new swing for either candidate.  How it will swing in the end, however, is entirely up to you.

We were saddened to learn of the recent passing of former Congressman Sam Gibbons (D-FL).

We had the chance to work with Rep. Gibbons closely in his capacity as chairman of the full Ways and Means Committee. Working with his Republican colleagues, Chairman Gibbons was instrumental in securing enactment of the Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI) and in laying the basis for the successor programs - the Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act (CBTPA) and the U.S.-Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement - both of which were enacted after he had left Congress.

His contributions in the area of trade liberalization in Central America will long be remembered while his bi-partisan and easy-going approach to the legislative process will be sorely missed.

On September 11 – 12, 2012, AAFA was thrilled to host the AAFA Board of Directors for our semi-annual Board meeting here in Washington.  During those meetings, we recognized the solid efforts of Senator Mitch McConnell and Senator Chuck Schumer with the annual AAFA Friend of the Industry Award.  We heard from many experts about the state of our economy, the implications of the Affordable Healthcare Act, and the upcoming election.  

Since then, I have been a “road warrior” for AAFA and our mission.  Travelling around the country – and the world – to speak on behalf of AAFA, recruit new members, and participate in discussions about the state of our industry helps me understand better the myriad of issues impacting our industry.  For members of the AAFA, it’s a great opportunity to express their thoughts on Washington, the upcoming elections, domestic manufacturing matters, and trade issues – all of which will define our industry for the next decade.  So, here’s a brief recap of my travels.

Directly following the Board meeting, I traveled to Tampa, Florida, to address the fall meeting of SPESA (Sewn Products Equipment Suppliers of the America) where I shared the stage with my good friend Tom Travis, Managing Partner of Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg P.A.  During our presentation, we addressed several themes, including the upcoming elections and its impact on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), what we envision as a successful outcome to the TPP, and the goal of TPP to be an opportunity to improve or enhance U.S. trade policy.

I then traveled to Oporto, Portugal to address the 28th Annual International Apparel Federation Meeting.  There, I met with many friends from around the world with whom I have worked during my tenure at AAFA.  I was a guest at the IAF Board meeting and later addressed the entire conference.  I provided a general economic outlook on the U.S. market, explained the political and economic issues pressuring our market in the United States, and discussed the issues affecting our industry in markets around the globe.  It was an opportunity to have face-to-face meetings with our industry’s trading partners and share the concerns we have in the global marketplace.  I was joined on my panel with colleagues from India, Brazil, Colombia, and Turkey.  

Following two days in the office (hey, who is that guy in Kevin’s office!), I travelled to New York where I was a guest speaker at the WWD Global Sourcing Forum.  There, I presented on “We Wear Our Votes, Sourcing and the 2012 Election.”  I shared with the attendees a short survey we conducted with our members in which we asked about their company’s biggest concerns right now and in five years.  Right now, our members are chiefly concerned with factory and material costs.  In five years, we expect the industry to be mostly concerned with mounting government regulations, product innovation, and competition from non-U.S. brands.  As the industry continues to grow globally, we are finding that over the next five years, the industry will need to overcome challenges presented by government restrictions, supply chain management, and competition from local brands.  I also discussed how the upcoming elections may have an impact on our industry’s sourcing decisions moving ahead.  

My final trip of the month was to New Orleans where I was the guest speaker at the Apparel Magazine Executive Forum.  I spoke on the politics of Washington, gave my thoughts on who I thought the winners and losers may be in November, and how the results of the election would impact the industry’s legislative and regulatory agenda.  I also had the great flight home from New Orleans, where I sat with James Carville (remember James from last year’s Executive Summit?).  James was preparing for his appearance on CNN’s coverage of that evening’s presidential debate.  We had a great talk about politics and just about everything else.  

In all, this whirlwind speaking tour around the world has provided AAFA with an excellent opportunity to show off our positive work on behalf of the industry and our four million U.S. workers.  With all eyes on the upcoming election, you better believe our industry matters more now than ever before.  

The first debate of the presidential election is now in the history books, and, with pretty much every debate rule broken by the candidates, probably neither is going to be invited to join their local debate club any time soon.  We will leave it to the pundits to determine who "won" and who delivered the best "zingers," although it seemed pretty obvious who the better poker player was. And we won't even touch who had the bigger American flag lapel pin on their suit.

The question that keeps us up at night, however, is how can we help the U.S. apparel and footwear industry support and grow the four million U.S. workers employed in helping you get dressed every day. With this in mind, we were looking for the candidates to detail concrete policies to improve the economy and increase consumer confidence to bring consumers back into the stores, reduce unnecessary, burdensome, and costly regulations that only serve to shackle American businesses and American workers at a time they can least afford it, and tackle government programs that take jobs away every day from American workers.

On these critical questions, neither candidate scored well. On government regulation, billed as one of the four pillars of tonight's debate, the candidates got bogged down in a back and forth on the efficacy of the recent Wall Street reform legislation known as Dodd-Frank, but nothing on how to address the onerous regulations impacting businesses on America's Main Streets.

Otherwise, the debate centered on the same issues, and the same rhetoric, we have all heard before: Obamacare and claims and counterclaims about what it does or doesn't do, who is really cutting Medicare, and who is cutting or raising taxes.  None of which really shed any new light on how either would help American businesses and American workers.

And instead of quips on how Romney would eliminate the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) to reduce the deficit (although he likes Big Bird) and how Obama thought Romney would agree with Obama's statement four years ago that he is not a perfect man and would not make a perfect president, we would have preferred answers as to why American taxpayers have to pay more to clothe our service men and women for the right to have federal prisoners take jobs away from law-abiding American workers.

Regardless of the performance of each candidate, it is clear that this remains a tight race - both nationally and in the so-called battleground states, where about 35 percent of our members are headquartered. We hope the campaign will move past the zingers and gotchas to propose real solutions to the real questions our industry is asking.

With the baseball playoffs right around the corner, let's call this first round a strike for both candidates. They have two more at bats to offer American businesses and American workers real solutions to the very real problems facing America today. They can either knock it out of the ballpark...or strike out.

All eyes in Washington are now firmly locked on the November 6 elections. On that day, Americans will go to the polls to elect a President, a Vice President, one-third of the Senate, the entire House of Representatives, a number of governorships, and countless state level offices. The major party conventions at the end of August and beginning of September signal the homestretch of the campaigns – a fact that many Americans, weary of seemingly endless negative political commercials, are no doubt welcoming with relief.

With a closely divided electorate, polling and pundits suggest partisan control of both chambers of Congress – where the Democrats control the Senate and the Republicans control the House – is still up for grabs. Numerous credible scenarios point to one or both Houses switching, or partisan control remaining static, albeit with slimmer majorities. Going into the final weeks of the campaign, the only certainty that remains is how deeply unpopular Congress has become as the American people have been disenchanted with its partisan bickering, lack of accomplishments, and ongoing economic malaise.

The outlook for the presidential elections is also murky. President Barack Obama has maintained slim leads over Republican challenger Governor Mitt Romney for much of the year. While polling continues to show deep concerns over the economy, including frustratingly high unemployment rates, and vocal opposition to signature elements of the Obama Administration agenda, such as the stimulus package or the health care reform law, Obama remains a relatively popular individual. Moreover, Romney has had difficulty shaking perceptions that he is a political opportunist, who is out of touch with the plight of most Americans. The result is that Romney may not be able to connect with American voters – be they conservatives or moderates – who are eager to see change.

Both candidates and both parties are describing this election as the most important in recent memory. While this claim is often made every four years, in this case it may actually be true. The country is facing unprecedented fiscal and economic challenges. In the coming year, political leaders will need to make tough choices that will force a decision, or compromise, between two competing economic and governing philosophies. To close budget deficits while maintaining essential government services and spending, Democrats are hoping to expand the tax base, particularly from wealthier Americans. Republicans favor an approach that redefines “essential government services,” with a goal of decreasing spending and avoiding tax hikes.

While these are generally long term decisions, some of these issues will ripen in the coming months as automatic spending cuts, tax increases, and program expirations take effect at the end of 2012 in a policy convergence that has been dubbed the “fiscal cliff.” Through the spring and the summer, many economists had warned that failure to resolve these so-called “fiscal cliff” policy issues by the end of the year would greatly harm the economy. Despite such dire warnings, in the approach to the 2012 elections, Congress and the executive branch have amply demonstrated they lack the political will power to deal with these issues in a timely and responsible manner. It remains to be seen if they can address the remaining issues after the elections in what is expected to be a contentious and packed “lame duck” session.

Besides the election, questions over the lame duck session – how long it will be and what will be addressed – have dominated political discussion in Washington for the past few months. Congress’s relative inability to make decisions over the past few years has resulted in a considerable backlog of issues – including those identified in the fiscal cliff – that “need” to be addressed by the end of this year. Into this policy bag are a number of trade issues, including renewal of miscellaneous tariff bill legislation, extension of permanent normal trade relations to Russia, the Affordable Footwear Act, and other measures that seek to liberalize trade. Other non-trade items of interest to the apparel and footwear industries, including legislation to reform Federal Prison Industries and to control fashion design piracy, may also be addressed during the lame duck session.

The unforgiving political climate that has pushed so many issues into this year’s lame duck session has also refocused attention on to the various independent and regulatory agencies responsible for implementing law and running programs. With congressional inaction, the regulated community has seen an increase in activity in and mandates from numerous agencies, including the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and Customs and Border Protection. Increased and uncoordinated activity by individual states, including divergent product safety and chemical management laws, has been another unfortunate byproduct of the lack of leadership from Washington.

Sensing the difficulty of getting anything accomplished during that pre-election period in September or the postelection period in November and December, Congress has already agreed to punt one set of issues – funding for the upcoming fiscal year – to March of 2013. Similarly, some have begun to argue that it will be easier to tackle the fiscal cliff issues by doing nothing so that the resulting crisis – should one materialize – would force the tough political decisions. While such talk may be just another form of brinkmanship in the approach to the elections, it does portend how difficult political compromise will be in the coming months.

View AAFA's Legislative Matrix >>

Being the consummate political animals, we were fascinated to watch last week’s GOP Convention in Tampa, FL.  

Although it was cut short by Hurricane Isaac, the convention still managed to hit all the requisite parts we’ve come to expect with modern political conventions.  Among the balloons and other celebrations, Republicans managed (1) to finalize their platform, (2) formalize their nomination of their candidates for President (former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney) and Vice President (Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI)), and (3) showcase prominent politicians and other speakers who they believe will set general themes for the upcoming campaign and election.

The high point came on Thursday when Romney gave the most important speech of his political life, making a case on why Americans should elect him over President Barack Obama in November.  He called out President Obama on his economic record since taking office four years ago, and hit the President hard on several important issues facing the country such as trade, jobs, energy, the budget, education, and small businesses.  The former governor countered with his own economic record and vision for the presidency, touting his time as President of Bain Capital, which, ironically, has emerged as a key line of attack from Democrats. He continued with his plan to create 12 million jobs by opening up all domestic natural resources, which he said would make the United States energy independent by 2020.  Romney spoke on his support for free trade agreements, but cautioned that trade must be accomplished fairly.  He also voiced his commitment to reduce taxes on small businesses including initiating an immediate repeal of the Affordable Care Act.  On education, Romney issued his strong support to give parents the freedom to send their children to the schools of their choice.   Aware that he is often accused of being out of touch with many Americans, Romney also tried to connect with voters on an emotional level, sharing stories of his father’s journey from his birthplace in Mexico to the governorship of Michigan as a true story of the American Dream.

Most observers believe Romney did what he had to do at the convention.  The question is whether that will be enough.  Conventional wisdom suggests President Obama still retains a slight lead in many polls taken at the national level, or, more importantly, in several of the key battleground states.  It remains to be seen how much sustained lift Romney (and his running mate, Paul Ryan) will get from the convention.  While early polling showed they received a small bump in the polls, Democrats (who begin their convention in Charlotte, NC this week) may see a bump as well.  Our gut feeling – which we know is shared by many pundits – is that this race could remain close until the final weeks or even days.

And, as political animals, we will have lots of opportunities to watch this campaign unfold.  In between now and election day we will have the Democratic convention, a series of Presidential and Vice Presidential debates, and a range of news stories that may affect the race.

We look forward to commenting on these developments during the next 60 days.   Stay tuned.

It isn't often when both parties and both Houses can come together so that Congress can pass legislation during an election year.  But that's what happened on August 2, 2012, when the House and Senate – within minutes of each other no less – approved a bill that packaged together three pending trade measures (H.R. 5986).  The measure became law a week later.

Those three measures include:

• A three-year extension of the third country fabric provision (which was set to expire September 30, 2012) and a designation of South Sudan as a beneficiary country in the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA)
• A series of “fixes” for the U.S./Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR)
• An extension of the president’s authority to impose an import ban on goods from Burma (which had expired a few days earlier)

The road to get approval was a bumpy one, made difficult by a number of process and content concerns that had little to do with the three measures themselves and everything to do with the difficult and partisan atmosphere in which we find ourselves these days.  Although all three measures were relatively non-controversial, tensions between Republicans and Democrats, between the House and the Senate, and between the Congress and the White House resulted in maddening and entirely avoidable delays.

The lesson here is two-fold.

First, there are matters – and many more we suspect – where our political leadership can find agreement.  Bipartisan initiatives don't have to be hard. Sometimes they are quite simple, and H.R. 5986 proved that.  We hope this and future Congresses, and the two presidential candidates, will take note that it is entirely possible to get things done.

Second, electoral pressures, partisan tensions, process failures, and distrust lingering from past mischief can be powerful obstacles that can derail even the simplest opportunities.  Our political process was designed to be inefficient – the Founding Fathers wanted to make it hard to pass laws – and the current environment makes this system especially fragile as well.  But the nature of these inefficiencies are well known – indeed they are staples of every eighth grade civics class – and their antidote of compromise – which as it happens is a staple of every kindergarten sandbox – is well known too.

Compromise is an essential ingredient to our political process.  It helps the important and non-controversial items move through our legislative process quickly while ensuring that the more difficult and thornier issues have a chance to get down as well, provided the various stakeholders communicate and work with each other.

Yet in the past few years, compromise has become a dirty word.

In the coming months, we will have to tackle serious issues that will affect many elements of our economy.  We can't afford to let electoral distractions and partisan squabbles interfere with these tasks.  With earnest compromise, our political leaders can resolve these tough issues. With any luck we may find that consensus between parties, chambers, and branches of government are not as rare as we thought.

Move over power tie.  Esquire recently published its “The Best-Dressed Candidates on the 2012 Trail” list highlighting the fashion sense of a handful of congressional candidates.  As the national trade association representing the U.S. apparel and footwear industry, we always find lists like this interesting.  Not only does it give us the opportunity to see the latest trends in men’s fashion in our own backyard, it gives us the opportunity to educate all of our lawmakers – present and future – about our great industry.

When we get dressed each day, we wear more than fashionable clothes and shoes.  We wear all of the public policy issues that make clothes and shoes possible, like trade, intellectual property, product safety, social responsibility, and sustainability. 

As we have learned this year, elected officials have great fashion sense.  In fact, according to the recent release of The Hill’s “50 Most Beautiful People List”, the 112^th Congress may be the most fashionable Congress in history.  But for us, fashion is more than just clothes and shoes.  Many public officials are surprised to learn that our industry supports four million U.S. workers and accounted for more than $360 billion at retail last year, even though 98 percent of the apparel and 99 percent of the footwear sold in the United States is made globally. 

It’s our job at AAFA to educate our lawmakers about our industry’s positive impact on the U.S. economy and work with them to formulate public policy that creates apparel and footwear jobs in the United States, drives creativity, and allows our industry to deliver quality, affordable, safe – and of course fashionable – clothing and shoes to American families. 

No matter which candidates win from Esquire’s list, every member of Congress will get the same message from us:  You are directly involved in helping 330 million Americans get dressed each day, and your work has never been more important.

For years “Seersucker Thursday” has been a Capitol Hill tradition. Typically held on the third Thursday of June, Senators would get out their best seersucker and sport the Southern look around D.C.  It was an event in which everyone could take part no matter their home state or political beliefs.  

The tradition was established in the mid ‘90s by Trent Lott (R-MS), the former Senate Majority Leader from Mississippi. Since Lott was from the South, it was a way of showing the other Senators – and others in Congress – about the light-weight fabric that could be worn during the hot summer seasons, while also looking stylish…or so they thought.  From then on the tradition continued every June, eventually accompanied by an ice cream social, where legislators and their families could come together without any conflict.

Times have clearly changed when the Senate can no longer even agree on a simple thing such as clothing.  Earlier last month, leaders in the Senate cancelled Seersucker Thursday, deciding it wouldn’t be politically wise to keep up the “frivolous” tradition since it would appear that Senators were not serious enough in their discussions on important issues like the economy and health care.

Yeah, right. 

Representing the clothing and footwear industry and its four million U.S. workers, we know this is not the first time clothing and shoes have been a prop topolitical ends and it won’t be the last. The late Alaska Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK) famously believed that wearing his lucky “Incredible Hulk” tie would make him seem more serious.  More recently, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) tried to tip the scales for the Supreme Court health care decision sporting her lucky purple pumps.

We find it incredible that legislators actually believe that wearing seersucker would affect the way people think of the Senate.  Public opinion for Congress – both the House and Senate – is at an all-time low, and it’s not because of the clothes and shoes their elected officials wear.  It’s because those elected officials have been largely incapable of effectively addressing national issues.

It says an awful lot about our political system when clothing and footwear is set up to be the scapegoat for political dysfunction. 

But it also says something else.

If senators and representatives can’t stand united in their seersucker suits and skirts, how can we expect them to stand united on anything? Moreover, if they find fault in their colleagues’ attire, how can we expect them to work toward bridging their differences in health care and other issues that concern the American public?  As a nation, we have tough and important decisions ahead of us, and these issues demand serious attention. 

Whether you hate or love seersucker, banishing “Seersucker Thursday” to the closet is not a solution. We should embrace these traditions as an opportunity for our legislators to bond with each other so that hopefully they can create relationships that lead to a bi-partisan cooperation.

As one might expect, the Presidential elections in November have been a major center of attention in Washington. For much of the winter and spring, political pundits were focused on the Republican nomination, which former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney effectively secured in late May with a primary win in Texas. While the nomination will be not made official until the Republican National Convention August 27-30, Romney and President Barack Obama are already aggressively campaigning most notably on the nation’s number one issue – the economy.

The economy especially plays quite strongly in those states where both candidates are concentrating a majority of their efforts. Under many current projections, Obama is already heavily favored in states representing 217 electoral votes while Romney can count as safe states those that account for 191 electoral votes. This leaves 130 electoral votes from states that are widely considered "swing" or "battleground" states, such as Florida (29), Pennsylvania (20), Ohio (18), North Carolina (15), and Virginia (15). Although Obama enjoys more pathways to victory (he can win with a greater combination of wins and losses than Romney and still reach the 270 electoral votes needed to win) and is not as dependent upon these swing states as Romney, both candidates are expected to concentrate a lot of attention in these states.

One scenario suggests that Romney and Obama could split these states leaving each of them only a few electoral votes short of victory and placing an unusual campaign spotlight on states like Wisconsin (10), Colorado (9), Nevada (6), Iowa (6), and New Hampshire (4). With some projections saying that the presidential race could be won by as little as 4 electoral votes, the stakes are very big in some very small places.

In the coming weeks, Romney will announce his Vice Presidential candidate, which has been the cause of much speculation by political insiders. Several names have mentioned for the spot including former Office of Management and Budget Director and newly elected Senator Rob Portman (R-OH), Senator John Thune (R-SD) and House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI). While no clear frontrunner for the spot has emerged, the decision will prove critical to Romney’s campaign and the future of Republican candidates for the next decade.

The presidential election aside, members of Congress are also gearing up for their own elections. No matter who emerges with control of the House or Senate, almost all scenarios suggest that the margins will be slimmer in the next Congress than they are now. Moreover, regardless of eventual partisan control, it is a foregone conclusion that the 113th Congress will include a record number of Members with little or no Congressional experience.

A key component to campaign strategy for all candidates will be the eventual outcome of the Supreme Court decision on the challenge to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in late June 2012. It is widely viewed that just about any outcome – including both the entire ACA being struck down or upheld – will not signal the end of health care reform in the political discussion. Other legal challenges are beginning to move through the Courts while Members of Congress from both parties have positioned themselves on legislation that seeks to defund or repeal various elements of the ACA.

The other dominant policy topic in Washington is the increasingly crowded agenda that will greet Members of Congress and the Executive Branch in the so-called “lame duck” session after the November elections. A concentration of economic decisions and deadlines mean that Congress will have to make tax, spending, and entitlement policies decisions that affect as much as 3 percent of American gross domestic product (GDP) during the six weeks between election day and the end of the year. And these are on some of the thorniest political issues of the day, including possible expiration of the “Bush” era= tax cuts and the automatic sequestration. Work is currently underway to address some of these issues over the next few months. Possible candidates for action during the few weeks that Congress is in session in July and September include a handful of FY 2013 spending bills, the Defense Authorization bill, several pending trade measures, a fix to student loan rates, and a long-term reauthorization of surface transportation programs. Nevertheless, a tough partisan climate, distrust between the chambers, and political gamesmanship will likely delay most significant decisions until after the November elections, or, as some pundits are now beginning to warn, after the first of the year.

Click here to view AAFA's Second Quarter Legislative Matrix >

Since 1985, the United States has been reporting annually on foreign trade barriers worldwide.   Compiled each March in the National Trade Estimates (NTE) report by the Office of the United States Trade Representative, this annual report is an excellent source of information on the foreign trade barriers that thwart U.S. companies, including many AAFA members.

It acts as “an inventory of the most important foreign barriers affecting U.S. exports of goods and services, foreign direct investment by U.S. persons, and protection of intellectual property rights.” On behalf of our members, we comment each year to make sure the annual report reflects barriers that affect the U.S. apparel and footwear industries.  See our blog about the 2012 NTE report, published earlier this year. 

Three decades of reporting on trade barriers also presents some interesting trends reflecting how trade barriers have migrated around the globe and how the attention of U.S. trade policy makers has shifted as well.  The reports have gone from an average of 41 countries during the first 10 years of their publication to an average of 61 countries during the last 10 years.  This has happened notwithstanding the fact that barriers in some countries – those in Europe for example – are reported through a regional grouping and not individually. (See Figure 1).

Likewise, the number of pages devoted to cataloging foreign trade barriers has also increased.    Except for a brief bout of enthusiasm during the tail end of the Bush Administration, where the authors were apparently paid by the page, the number of pages in the annual NTE report has steadily increased and now equals about 400.  (See Figure 2). 

Another fascinating trend is the way in which the reports have shifted their focus on different countries.  Looking at page numbers for individual country reports over the last 25 years (see Figure 3), one can see how the reports have taken turns highlighting problems in Europe, then Japan, and then the so-called BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) countries.   Interestingly, the combined number of pages devoted to this region of the world – which accounts for about 34 percent of U.S. goods and services exports in 2012 and includes some of the most persistent trade barriers we’ve yet uncovered – accounts for about 35 percent of the NTE report and is dropping. 

Some trade pundits have labeled the expansion of the NTEs over the years as “trade barrier creep,” suggesting a number of economic and political reasons to explain the heftier volumes.

Whatever the reason, we at AAFA continue to work in a pivot role to educate policy makers and the industry on the impact and status of these barriers.  We have long use the annual NTE comment process to highlight trade barriers we believe need to be dismantled.  Earlier this month we unveiled a new tool – country profiles – that will help AAFA members access those market.  Each profile contains important country information regarding tariff and fee rates, product safety standards, labeling requirements, intellectual property issues, and an exclusive rating system that gauges who easy it is to do business in that country.

Last night, a few AAFA members and I had the privilege of attending a dinner with President Benigno Aquino III of the Philippines. Over the course of his visit here to the United States, President Aquino will meet with U.S. officials to discuss many important issues, including trade, economic development, and military cooperation, that would further strengthen our relationship with this Asia Pacific nation.

During a Capitol Hill breakfast this morning with stakeholders, I had the opportunity to speak about the U.S. apparel and footwear industry’s longstanding support for the Save Our Industries Act (SAVE Act). Simply put, the SAVE Act would lift tariffs on Philippines-made garments that use American textiles.  This duty-free access would also take a big step towards re-establishing the competitiveness of the Philippine apparel industry, a key sector of the Philippine economy.

In my view, this win-win-win legislation works to provide opportunities to U.S. textile workers and U.S. exports, aid in job creation in the Philippines garment industry, and serve to further strengthen our important and long-standing strategic partnership with the Philippines. I look forward to working with Congress to ensure that the SAVE Act is passed as soon as possible.

This year we celebrate the 130th anniversary of the birth of famed American literary critic George Jean Nathan.  Among his many contributions to American life, Mr. Nathan once declared, “Bad officials are elected by good citizens who do not vote.” 

It is fitting that we reflect on his timeless advice this month, with only five months left before the nation takes to the polls. 

On November 6, 2012, individual Americans will collectively choose our next President and will cast votes that will determine who represents them in Congress, in a number of governorships, and in many key state and local offices.

This is a fundamental right that is one of the founding principles of our democracy.  Next month we will celebrate the 236th anniversary of Independence Day, when we initially declared Independence so we could exercise that right.  Last month we observed Memorial Day to honor those among us who paid the ultimate sacrifice to preserve our ability to exercise that right.

Yet for too many Americans, this right is taken for granted and ignored.

If we look at the 2008 election, with a voting age population (VPA) of 270.8 million, only 57.48% of eligible Americans voted.  While that may be the highest voting percentage since the 1968 elections, we’re still looking at nearly half the population not participating. 

That makes me sad – especially since one of the great American pastimes is to complain about government and the people who are in office.  It seems to me that if we spent more time engaged in our democratic process, including exercising our right to vote for the individuals who we think would do the best job, then we might be able to complain less.   Certainly, we should ignore those complaints from those who didn’t take the time to vote in the first place.

With this current election year generating so much energy – good and bad – we hope more people will be motivated to cast their votes.

About this time in the election process we start hearing the words “why should I vote?”  The answer is actually quite simple. We get to vote for whomever we deem worthy, in private, with no requirement to divulge who we voted for or why.  By voting, we are exercising a right and privilege to select our leaders and to make and change laws.   It’s a fundamental right and too often it is taken for granted.

But you can’t vote unless you are registered.  And registration, while easy, usually has to be done at least a few weeks before the elections.  Although it is too late to register or vote in many – but not all – primaries, it is not too late to make sure your registration is updated for the general elections that take place on November 6, 2012. Check your state's voter laws and registration deadlines here

With 2012 being a Presidential election year, we have additional opportunities to engage in the political process.  Toward the end of the summer, the major political parties will hold their conventions.  To quote journalist Jim Lehrer, “The political conventions are among the few ‘shared’ national political events left.” The Republican National Convention will be held in Tampa Bay, Florida on August 27-30, while the Democratic National Convention will be during the week of September 3-6 in Charlotte, North Carolina. These national conventions combine three important functions: nomination of candidates for the office of President and Vice President; the platform; and adoption of rules and procedures governing party activities, particularly the nomination process for presidential candidates in the next election cycle.

Individually and collectively we all share the responsibility of participating in our elections. Part of that shared responsibility involves educating ourselves about the positions of the candidates and the positions they represent.   

Mr. Nathan also said, “No man can think clearly when his fists are clenched."  So if you are angry about what’s going on in Washington, or in your local government, unclench your fists, educate yourself about your choices, register, and then vote.

Remember, Election Day is on November 6, 2012.

Today, we close out the first ever “Imports Work for America Week.”  What started as an idea by the Washington trade community to educate policy makers that “imports” isn’t a four letter word has truly transformed into a group effort to underscore the immense value that imports have for the U.S. economy.

Over this week, AAFA has demonstrated how imports help create and sustain U.S. jobs, benefit working families on tight budgets, support U.S. manufacturing, and create opportunities for economic development.  We couldn’t be more proud of the solid effort of so many folks who helped articulate the ‘import’ant message about imports this week.

Now that the case for imports has been made, we urge Congress and the Obama Administration to continue their work with industry stakeholders and seize opportunities to put imports to work for America. 

Some of these opportunities include:

• Successfully completing the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations.  As outlined on Monday, the TPP represents a significant market opening opportunity for U.S. exports.  At the same time, imports from TPP partner countries provide many job-creating opportunities for workers the United States.

• Passing the Affordable Footwear Act, common sense legislation that would eliminate the hidden and regressive import tax on children’s shoes and certain low cost footwear no longer made in the United States.  As we explained on Tuesday, removing this tax helps make shoes more affordable for working families.

• Passing the Save Our Industries (SAVE) Act, legislation that we discussed on Thursday designed to spur U.S. textile exports to the Philippines in return for duty free access for garments made from those same textiles.  Not only does this legislation create U.S. exports, it supports one of our strongest Asian-Pacific allies with a chance for real economic development.

• Renewing the Cotton and Wool Trust Funds.  As we outlined on Wednesday, some U.S. apparel manufacturers utilize these programs to keep their “Made in the USA” products competitive in the global market.

• Completing the transparent Miscellaneous Trade Bill (MTB) process and passing the MTB as soon as possible.  Just as we discussed on Wednesday, the MTB supports domestic U.S. apparel and footwear manufacturing jobs by offering solutions to apparel and footwear, and their components, no longer produced in the United States.

• Passing the U.S. OUTDOOR Act, legislation that would temporarily eliminate the import duties on certain types of “recreational performance outerwear.” This outerwear is not made in the United States and represents the most technologically-advanced outerwear on the market today. 

• Making two fixes to the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement – a set of pending technical fixes and a fix for the expiring Nicaragua TPL provision.  The United States and its CAFTA-DR partners agreed to a series of technical fixes in February 2011, yet the United States in the only CAFTA-DR country that has not yet taken action.  While the Nicaragua provision does not expire until 2014, many U.S. apparel companies have started to suspend orders based on concerns that the provision won’t be renewed by Congress.  This delay and uncertainty prevents imports from working for America.

• Renewing the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Third Country Fabric Provision – This provision – which expires September 30, 2012 – accounts for virtually all apparel trade under AGOA. Many apparel firms have already canceled orders for fall 2012 because of concern that Congress won’t renew the provision.

• Passing legislation, such as the Asia-South Pacific Trade Preferences Act, to extend trade preferences to least developed countries, like Cambodia, that currently do not have access to the U.S. trade preference program.  This legislation will support economic development in some of the poorest countries of the world that are still locked out of U.S. preferences for their most important exports.

• Updating the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program to include travel goods no longer made in the United States so the power of imports can work in this sector as well.

For AAFA, imports not only play a vital role in the U.S. apparel and footwear industry’s success, but imports also serve as a driver of economic growth.  To that end, we look forward to continuing this conversation outside of “Imports Work for America Week.” 

As we turn to day four of “Imports Work for America Week,” we have an opportunity to talk about how imports work for economic development. 

In one sense, today’s theme brings together some of the discussion from the previous days.  We’ve already seen that imports create U.S. jobs, provide opportunities for working families, and support U.S. manufacturing.  Each of those factors in turn promotes economic development throughout the United States, which in turn stimulate further benefits.  A textile worker making thread in Georgia out of imported fiber benefits directly by his job.  And with that livelihood, she can pay for food or clothes (that will be offered to her at an affordable price and with greater variety through the power of imports).  That purchase in turn helps support the retail worker, who in turn can purchase products.  The jobs, the factory, and the store contribute to the tax base supporting, and stimulate the development of, infrastructure and the provision of public services, like schools.  Just as with exports, imports have an undeniably positive effect on the U.S. economy.

But there is another side of the economic development angle.  U.S. imports stimulate economic development around the world.   This is particularly true in the apparel and footwear industry, where a lot of production of clothes and shoes occurs in developing countries.   As labor intensive industries, apparel and footwear factories create lots of jobs in these countries directly though employment in the factory and indirectly as those jobs create demands for products and services by the factories, the workers, and the communities.

Take for example, the Codevi facility run by Grupo M on the Haitian side of the Haitian - Dominican Republic border.  Employing about 6,500 Haitians, that factory supports about one-third of the population of the nearby town of Ouanaminthe.   But that factory is made possible because of imports of apparel (and possibly footwear) under a series of U.S. trade preference programs.   A similar program – the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) supports economic development through imports in Africa.  Proposals have been made in Congress to extend preference programs to the Philippines and to other least developed countries – again with the recognition that economic development in those countries can be sustained if those countries are able to export products to the United States.  

Over the past few years, the AAFA team and I have been fortunate to visit some of our members’ facilities in China, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Mexico, Honduras, Vietnam, the Philippines, Bangladesh, Mauritius, and India.   We are always impressed by the stories these facilities tell in supporting communities with jobs, facilities, and other services – such as access to medical care, schooling, clean water, and roads.  Again, none of that is possible without U.S. imports.

And here’s another cool thing. 

Just as our imports create jobs and economic growth in other countries, the same economic strategy fuels markets for U.S. exports.  By purchasing other folks’ products, we give them the ability to purchase from us.  Moreover, as our trading partners grow and prosper, in addition to becoming better customers, they become more stable and more reliable friends. 

Over the course of “Imports Work for America Week,” we have discussed the positive role of imports in supporting U.S. jobs and increasing the purchasing power of American families.  Today, we are thrilled to discuss how imports work for American manufacturing.

Just because 99 percent of the footwear and 98 percent of the apparel sold in the United States each year is produced internationally doesn’t mean there isn’t a vibrant and active domestic apparel and footwear manufacturing footprint here in the United States.  AAFA estimates that there are more than 150,000 U.S. jobs dedicated to manufacturing U.S. made clothes and shoes for the commercial market and the U.S. military market.

When you look at the shirt or sandals you are wearing, what do you see?  Perhaps the color?  Perhaps the style?  Perhaps a small stain from lunch?  We see the hundreds of components that went into that garment and pair of shoes. 

Even the simplest white t-shirt has three components: fabric, sewing thread, and a tag (unless the labeling information is applied directly to the garment – but that application is still a component!).  Now – depending on your style preferences – add any or more of the following: buttons, zippers, trims, embroidery thread, sequins, or the little plastic things you put in your shirt collar.  Or for your shoes: laces, grommets, rubber soles, textile outsoles, leather uppers, heels, and all the interior components of the shoe sole you can’t see.  

We also notice the cotton or polyester blend used to make the fabric, the leather or rubber used to make the soles, the dye used to color the fabric and thread, and all of the various materials used to make the embellishments.

All of those components have to be made, grown, or raised somewhere.  Sometimes these components are made here in the United States.  Sometimes they are made all around the world and imported into the United States for final assembly. 

For instance, certain cotton fabric used to make dress shirts or wool used to make some business suits isn’t readily available in the United States.   But the United States is a leading producer of these products.  To help these U.S. manufacturers remain competitive, AAFA has long supported the Cotton and Wool Trust Funds designed to refund the duties U.S. manufacturers have to pay on imported fabric they use to make.  Products like these, as well as a plethora of products designed for the U.S. military, help support U.S. exports of U.S. made apparel and footwear worth more than $2 billion in 2011.

“Made in the U.S.A.” brands and products are just as important to AAFA as U.S. branded products made outside the United States.  Collectively, these products represent an industry that produces in every corner of the world, including right here at home.

Yesterday’s launch of “Imports Works for America” week was a huge success.  We enjoyed the opportunity to discuss the positive impact of imports on U.S. jobs.  Today, we are equally excited to explain how “Imports Work for American Families.”

In 2011, Americans purchased more than 20 billion garments and more than two billion pairs of shoes.  99 percent of those shoes and 98 percent of those clothes were produced internationally and imported into the United States. 

At the same time, American families continue to spend even less of their family budgets on apparel and footwear but get even more.  When we look at Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) data prepared by the U.S. Department of Labor, we see that American families spent only 3.2 percent of their annual income on clothes and shoes in 2011.  This number represents a significant drop over the last decade.  In fact, in 1999, apparel alone accounted for 3.5 percent of an average family’s annual spending.   Despite families committing less of their family budgets to apparel and footwear purchases, consumption continues to climb.

The linkage between low consumer prices and imports – and therefore the value of imports to American families – is clear.  Simply put, imported apparel and footwear products allow for family-friendly pricing at retail.  Don’t be fooled.  There are trade critics that suggest imports are detrimental to the U.S. economy.  It’s actually quite the opposite.  Imported apparel and footwear products pump more than $340 billion into the U.S. economy each year. 

Unfortunately, some policy makers in Washington, D.C., do not value imports as much as they should, and therefore subject their constituents to higher prices by keeping outdated tariffs – or taxes on imported goods – on the books.  For instance, the Affordable Footwear Act is common sense legislation that would remove the outdated and hidden tax on children’s shoes and certain other low cost footwear no longer made in the United States.   What’s worse, the regressive nature of these taxes places a higher burden on working class families who can least afford them.

AAFA has worked aggressively over the last five years to pass this legislation because of the direct benefit to hardworking American families.  In 2010, every American purchased on average seven pairs of shoes.  Imagine the billions of dollars in savings that would go directly into the pockets of hardworking American families if the outdated tax on these shoes was eliminated!

Each year, the United States marks May as “International Trade Month.”  During this month, the President, administration officials, and congressional leaders highlight international trade as a driver of the U.S. economy.  We are always pleased when our leaders discuss just how important trade is to our economy, and this month is no different.

At the same time, we find that this important conversation about international trade is often lopsided.  U.S. exports are indeed a driver of economic growth, but imports are just as impactful in terms of economic growth.

That’s why AAFA, along with a broad coalition of organizations, is pleased to announce May 7 to May 11 as the first ever “Imports Works for America Week,” a weeklong conversation about the very important role imports play in the U.S. economy.

This week, we will be highlighting a variety of themes related to the value of imports to the U.S. economy.  Today’s theme, “Imports Work for U.S. Jobs,” is a no-brainer for the U.S. apparel and footwear industry.

When we get dressed each day, we wear more than just clothes and shoes.  We wear nearly four million U.S. jobs that make those clothes and shoes possible.  And nearly every one of those jobs, with the exception of those jobs related to the manufacturing of military apparel and combat footwear produced for our troops under the Berry Amendment, exists because of imports.  You see, 98 percent of the clothes and 99 percent of the shoes sold in the United States are produced internationally.

These four million import-dependent jobs include industry executives, textile mill workers, sourcing managers, wholesalers, retail floor associates, technical designers, and marketing professionals, just to name a few. In fact, compliance jobs are some of the fastest growing positions in our industry.  The industry also supports countless other U.S. industries, like the more than 37,000 transportation jobs it requires to move products from the port to the sales floor and the 235,000 dry cleaning jobs required to maintain and protect the industry’s quality product.

Most Americans don’t realize that it takes more than four million Americans to help them get dressed each day, but it is completely true when you consider the process by which an article of clothing travels from a designer’s mind to the inside of your closet.

And these are well-paying jobs. According to an AAFA/24Seven, Inc. survey conducted last year, the median salary across the entire industry supply chain is $70,000. According the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average hourly earnings for a worker in a U.S. apparel factory is $11.82 per hour. The average hourly earnings for a worker in a U.S. apparel or footwear brand is $25.28 per hour and the average hourly earnings for a worker in the retail side of the apparel and footwear business is $14.38 per hour. Likewise, the average hourly earnings for a worker in transportation and logistics, a key link in the apparel and footwear supply chain, is $21.74 per hour.

A large part of our mission at AAFA is to help promote those jobs and highlight the direct value they bring to the United States. So, please, when you pick out your outfit tomorrow morning, take a second and think about the four million Americans who helped you get dressed.

Since Republican Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney released his Plan for Jobs and Economic Growth, we have reviewed his ambitious goals set for his first day in office and their effects on the apparel and footwear industry.  We are no strangers to ambitious one-day agendas, having set an ambitious one ourselves this past leap day.

Although Governor Romney probably doesn’t think he can get them all done on day one – among other things, he needs Congressional help on at least five of them – he has some ideas we sincerely welcome on the international trade front.  One in particular we like is the second piece of legislation on his list: The Open Markets Act, which would “reinstate the president’s Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) to facilitate negotiation of new trade agreements.”  We like this idea so much that we included this in our one-day short list also.  TPA has been sitting idle since 2007 when it expired during the second term of the Bush Administration.   Not surprisingly, our free trade agreements (FTA) agenda has been largely stalled since then also with work occurring only in the last year to pass old FTAs and start new ones.  Renewing TPA is needed to signal U.S. willingness to negotiate new agreements.  With the Obama administration’s tepid interest in reinstating TPA several times over the past year, efforts to re-instate TPA the issue have stalled.  Restoring the TPA would help conclude the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Free Trade Agreement negotiations and open up pathways for other free trade agreements.

On the other hand, we aren’t very excited about his promise to declare China a currency manipulator, and to seek trade remedies based on this declaration.  It seems rather out of place on his list of executive orders, most of which promote economic development by removing barriers.  Governor Romney has promised to seek a constructive relationship with China, yet his first action – to direct “the Department of the Treasury to list China as a currency manipulator in its biannual report” – would have the opposite effect.  Trying to figure out a “correct” value of the dollar/yuan exchange rate, which Governor Romney has in effect promised to do, is intuitively impossible, counter-productive, and not the best use of our leverage in the complicated U.S./China relationship.   President Obama has recognized this fact, and has so far wisely refrained from taking such action.  In our opinion, there are better ways to promote job growth vis-à-vis our trade relationship with China.  Improved intellectual property rights (IPR) protections and better market access are important issues that have great potential to save and create U.S. jobs.  U.S. and other North American apparel and footwear brands are the best in the world.  However, poor enforcement and other IPR violations severely tarnish brand identities and reputations, and endanger U.S. jobs, U.S. public safety, and U.S. economic growth.  Controlling IPR theft in China – which is the source of most of the counterfeit clothes and shoes found in the United States – would directly benefit the four million U.S. workers in the apparel and footwear industry.  By focusing on promoting better market access and reducing IPR violations in China, Governor Romney could make a much bigger impact on our economy than any sanction could provide.

After the presidential nominating process concludes and the election kicks into full gear, we look forward to hearing from both candidates on how they intend to promote U.S. competitiveness and engagement in foreign markets.   We hope that those goods ideas – such as passing Trade Promotion Authority – will quickly rise to the top of the agenda for whoever wins on November 6.  

AAFA spent most of this week meeting with nearly 130 members of our Government Contracts Committee.  The members of this AAFA committee are representatives from the domestic textile, apparel, and footwear manufacturing base who produce military uniforms and combat footwear for U.S. troops.  What’s more, this committee represents thousands of U.S. workers who outfit our troops.

During the meeting, we continued our discussion about the need to reform Federal Prison Industries (FPI), the government-run program that puts inmates to work while in prison.  Over the last several years, domestic apparel manufacturers – and the hardworking taxpayers they employ – have lost significant market share – and therefore jobs – to federally-incarcerated inmates because of FPI’s unbridled preference in the government procurement system. 

Over the past few months, AAFA has been ramping up reform efforts, including the launch of a “We the People” petition on whitehouse.gov.   During this time, we’ve had three important pieces of legislation introduced in Congress, including the Department of Defense Textile and Apparel Procurement Fairness Act (H.R. 2312), the Federal Prison Industries Competition in Contracting Act (H.R. 3634), and the Federal Prison Accountability Act of 2012 (S. 2169).  When combined, these bills represent a tremendous opportunity for real reform of FPI, and we look forward to continuing our work to have these bills passed as soon as possible.

Although our efforts fell short of the 25,000 signatures required to receive an official response from the White House, our members, working together with congressional allies, were able to tell their story directly to the American people in the press.  Their ability to tell their story helped diffuse the immediate threats posed by FPI.

As was reported by The Hill, we keep our eyes forward and focused on our goal of long-term relief more now than ever before.  In fact, we posted another petition today on the White House Web site.  Please take a moment and sign your name in support of domestic manufacturing jobs. 

Just as President Obama said in his 2012 State of the Union Address, “Let’s never forget: Millions of Americans who work hard and play by the rules every day deserve a government and financial system that do the same.”  In the case of FPI reform, the rhetoric and the reality do not match.  Small apparel and textile manufacturers continue to tell stories of lost contacts to FPI because of FPI’s ability to unilaterally take any contract they choose.  We don’t think it’s fair for working families to lose their jobs to prisoners.  If you agree, show your support by signing our petition. 

To learn more about the need to reform FPI, please visit wewearreform.org > 

In case you missed it, today is Tax Day.  People all around the country (and even some on staff here at AAFA) are busy crunching numbers to fill in their 1040 form ahead of tonight’s deadline.

If you stop by the mall on your way to or from the post office or jump on your favorite store’s Web site after e-filing, and purchase a shirt, a pair of shorts, or new sandals for the summer with your anticipated return, today is Double Tax Day for you.

You see, 98 percent of the clothing and 99 percent of the shoes sold in the United States are imported.  And often, those imports are charged a duty, or a tax paid to the government to allow that product to enter into the United States.  For every American who wears clothes and shoes, you are paying extra taxes to the government and you may not even realize it.  In fact, while apparel and footwear imports account for only less than five percent of total U.S. imports, clothes and shoes account for more than 40 percent of total duties collected by the U.S. government.  And these duties amount to a $30 billion tax at the cash register every year for hardworking American families.

In reality, there is no way for hardworking American families to avoid these taxes, unless that garment or that pair of shoes came from a country that has an existing free trade agreement with the United States that offers duty-free access.  To date, the United States has 18 free trade agreements in force, and the Obama Administration recently announced that the long-pending free trade agreement with Colombia will enter into force on May 15, 2012. 

This news was welcomed by AAFA because Colombia continues to emerge as a promising sourcing partner for our industry.  But, as our industry continues to plan for 2012 and beyond, adding more trade partners is critical.  We’re excited about the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). With so many opportunities to drive our industry forward, like incorporating flexible and commercially meaningful rules of origin into the TPP, we continue to educate the Obama Administration and our TPP partners on what it takes to negotiate a TPP agreement that keeps our industry’s nearly four million U.S. workers competitive in the global marketplace. 

At the same time, we are keeping our eyes open for additional opportunities for future growth because we believe a robust trade policy helps support U.S. jobs, builds a stronger U.S. economy, and drives U.S. prosperity. 

Over the past several years, the value of footwear as an economic indicator in today’s market-driven culture has increased significantly.  In 2010, footwear accounted for $64 billion at retail and supported more than one million U.S. jobs.  In spite of an uncertain economy that has loomed since 2008, the U.S. footwear industry has been able to thrive in its mission of providing affordable, safe, and fashionable shoes to hardworking U.S. consumers.

In response to the consumer’s continued demand for reasonably-priced footwear, the U.S. footwear industry has made significant shifts in its overall sourcing strategy over the last year.  However, sourcing strategies alone cannot satisfy consumer tastes and preferences.  Navigating the complex connections between consumer desires and business goals can be daunting, especially when the industry is trying to predict what the customer wants next.

To help overcome that challenge, the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) will be hosting a one-day event titled “We Wear the Right Formula: Navigating the U.S. Footwear Market in 2012 and Beyond.” The event will feature several top leaders in the footwear industry and explore some of the hottest issues and trends facing the global retail market. This conference will occur May 1, 2012 in New York City, and will highlight emerging issues that are currently facing U.S. footwear brands and their suppliers.

During this one-day program, specific agenda items will be targeted to educate U.S. footwear companies on today’s economic trends and how they will likely impact retailers and the footwear industry through the remainder of this year. Our impressive lineup of speakers will navigate attendees through the process of preparing for upcoming shopping seasons and direct them toward understanding how to better leverage new technologies for product portfolios. Attendees will be guided to success with strategies of how to attract and retain top performers as well as growth strategies to remain ahead of the curve while remaining optimistic through economic uncertainty.

Deloitte will present an outlook on consumer spending and economic factors likely to impact the retail industry.  Carl Steidtmann, Chief Economist and Director of Consumer Business, Deloitte Research, Deloitte Services LP, will deliver the keynote address. During his remarks, Steidtmann will highlight several factors that may influence consumer spending power in the near term such as declining real incomes, high unemployment and rising oil prices. Following the morning keynote, Deloitte will unveil the results of its Third Annual Spring Consumer Survey. This survey explores consumer sentiment and digital trends that are impacting purchase behaviors. Retailers and manufacturers alike can pull helpful information from this survey to address the needs and tastes of their consumers.

In this modern era, it is clear that consumers drive the apparel and footwear industry.  And we need a supply chain to match.  While China continues to remain the dominant supplier of footwear production, rising wages, spiraling materials prices, and increasing energy and transportation costs have forced companies to diversify their supply chains. In response, the industry has added other countries to their supply chain portfolios. How can companies leverage new technologies as they look to diversify their product portfolios across the globe? Why is collaboration among trading partners more critical than ever? And why has the changing regulatory environment around the globe made supply chain visibility vital to having an effective and efficient global supply chain?  Li & Fung USA’s President Rick Darling will be on hand to help attendees tackle these challenging questions.

In order to capitalize on these consumer preferences, our industry’s global supply chain requires a certain level of proficiency and expertise.  We are thrilled that Ricardo Alvar, Chief Business Development Officer, Global Retail, 24 Seven, will expound on what the industry should be doing to maximize the talent pool based on recruitment, retention, and education that can allow the supply chain to succeed in meeting the consumer’s 21st century tastes.

We hope you will join us for “Navigating the U.S. Footwear Market in 2012 and Beyond” on May 1, 2012, in New York City.  Visit the AAFA Web site for more information.

This column originally appeared in the April issue of Fashion Mannuscript. 

We were delighted to hear that Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Demetrios Marantis last week travelled to Los Angeles to meet with U.S. apparel industry stakeholders.  If U.S. trade policy is going to hold meaning for our industry, it is critical for the Obama Administration to connect with our industry, learn about all the issues we confront each day, and fashion a trade policy that helps us compete. 

In fact, over the past few weeks, the Obama Administration has taken great strides to meet with us on our turf.  We recently hosted Ambassador Marantis at the 2012 AAFA Annual Executive Summit in Washington, D.C. in mid-March, where he provided a trade policy update to 170 top industry executives.  We were also pleased to hear from Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Francisco Sanchez when he provided a keynote address to 100 sourcing executives at the AAFA’s 2012 International Sourcing, Customs, and Logistics Integration Conference in New Orleans just a few weeks ago. 

Meetings and events like this help provide our trade negotiators with key intelligence that enables them to develop an effective trade policy that works for the hardworking American families who create and wear our products.

We were troubled by one account of Ambassador Marantis’s meeting, as reported by California Apparel News, that suggested the key to the competitiveness of the U.S. apparel industry is higher tariffs.   Nothing could be further from the truth.

U.S. apparel tariffs are already incredibly high, and it’s a burden shouldered by American workers, American companies, and American families every day.  In fact, while apparel accounts for less than four percent of U.S. imports by value, duties on U.S. apparel imports account for more than 36 percent of total duties collected by the United States.   And the individual tariffs on apparel are some of the highest faced on any imported product.   Increasing those tariffs does not result in a boost of exports but rather an additional tax on American families.  You see, 98 percent of the clothing sold in the United States each year is imported.  Additionally, if we raise our duties even higher, it’s likely that other countries would raise their tariffs in retaliation, limiting export opportunities for U.S. apparel manufacturers.  Who would buy our goods if we refused to buy anyone else’s?

Higher tariffs and burdensome rules are obstacles to both exports and imports.  When U.S. apparel companies are forced to trade under rules that require yarn and fabric exports to originate in the U.S. or free trade agreement partner countries – known as the “yarn forward rule of origin” – our free trade agreements miss important opportunities to create American jobs.  Therefore, the value of entering into free trade agreements is diminished.  That’s because the “all or nothing” approach embodied in yarn forward rules simply don’t work for a global industry with a global supply chain catering to rapidly changing fashion trends.

As also noted from the meeting, it is clear that job training and immigration reform are critical to the overall success of U.S. trade policy.  We look forward to continuing the conversation with the Obama Administration about these important issues.

In all, Ambassador Marantis is correct when he challenges our industry to export by utilizing existing free trade agreements.  Had we been present at this meeting, we would have issued our own challenge for the Obama Administration:  Create more export opportunities by pursuing more marketing opening agreements, like completing a robust and commercially-meaningful Trans-Pacific Partnership without the kind of burdensome rules that hinder trade, investment, and jobs.  Our industry makes and sells all over the world.  Making it easier for the world to wear U.S. brands helps our industry compete globally.

It was great seeing so many AAFA members and friends at the seventh annual Prime Source Forum (PSF) this past week.  We had the chance to be in Hong Kong for that three day event, where we also participated in a number of other formal and informal meetings, including the annual meeting of the Global Apparel Footwear Textile Initiative (GAFTI), the Source ASEAN conference, and the Clothing Industry Training Authority (CITA). 

The discussions in and out of these meetings – in the workshops, the formal presentations, and even over coffee – continued to hit many similar themes.

First, China continues to be a major topic of discussion, and in fact was the topic of the closing debate at PSF.   China continues to play a dominant role in sourcing for our industry, even though many companies are pursuing various “China plus one” and “plus two” strategies.  But even in this dominance there is considerable change. Responding to challenges or new opportunities, many companies are staying in China but are dramatically overhauling their sourcing strategy to locate new factory partners.  One company reported that it has spent less than two years in half its China factories.  What such changes mean for long term partnerships or the steepness of new compliance and production learning curves remains to be seen.

At the same time, companies have identified new sourcing countries all over the world.  One country – Burma (Myanmar) – is gaining lots of scrutiny as the prospect of irreversible democratic reforms may open that country up again in the near future.  As one speaker at PSF said, "There has been more talk of Burma in the last five days than in the last five years."  

China, along with other newly industrializing countries, is also an intense area of development for companies looking for retail opportunities and brand penetration.  With 95 percent of the world's consumers living outside the United States, brands are looking at markets in China, India, Brazil, and Russia. 

Second, collaboration throughout the supply chain remains key.  While overused as a buzzword, collaboration remains a critical and underused part of any functioning supply chain. Keeping customers and suppliers on the same page has become more critical as supply chains are subjected to increasingly complex and sometimes conflicting requirements.  We congratulate our friends at GAFTI for pulling together Hong Kong-based sourcing and compliance executives to achieve better alignment up and down the supply chain in such areas as labor compliance, product safety, and sustainability.  The proliferation of programs and audits has driven up costs.  We think Edwin Keh from the Wharton School of Business said it best when he stated, "Audits don't make a garment better."

Third, controlling costs was a related theme that pervaded nearly every conversation.  Executives are clearly hungry for ways to manage wages and other labor costs, currency costs, testing costs, and tariffs.  Over the week we heard about many strategies to achieve this, including trade agreement utilization, sourcing shifts, and measures to reduce audit fatigue.  One area that may emerge as a key driver of cost reduction is sustainability.  In several fora, experts detailed how sustainable practices.  Once thought of as a cost itself, sustainability is now revealing cost-saving methodologies.  At the same time there is a growing realization that cost containment can only go so far and that prices may begin to rise.  Several speakers suggested that this may only be a return to an "old normal," noting that good clothing and footwear didn't always equate to low prices.  Driving that point home, one speaker stated that "After all, footwear is a complicated piece of engineering." 

The last theme that emerged from our week in Hong Kong is that change is the constant in our industry.  Perhaps the underlying theme of each program is how different things are now than they were just a few years ago.  New sourcing, regulations, and markets mean that trusted models are no longer reliable.  Competitive companies are learning they can only survive if they do a better job of skating to the puck.  

One area of change that we may see in the coming years is a greater effort by the industry to act as a global force.  As folks looked at our We Wear brand, where we measure the jobs and economic footprint (pun fully intended) of our industry in the United States, there was a greater realization that this industry has a huge global presence.  But this global impact is severely muted due to fragmentation.  With the proliferation of new rules and the growth of new markets, many of the industry executives that we saw were talking about the need for this industry to find its global voice.

We look forward to continuing our exploration of these key themes when AAFA returns to Asia in May for our International Product Safety & Environmental Compliance Conferences in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam on May 17 and in Shanghai, China on May 22.

We had the chance to hear about the Obama Administration’s trade policy in New Orleans last week when Under Secretary for International Trade Francisco Sanchez stopped by our 10th Annual International Sourcing, Customs and Logistics Integration Conference to deliver a keynote address.  Under Secretary Sanchez is the top guy at the Commerce Department’s International Trade Administration, which administers a range of U.S. trade programs and promotes U.S. exports.  Among other things, the Office of Textiles and Apparel and the offices that administers Foreign Trade Zones, are located in the ITA.

Speaking to about 100 top executives in the apparel and footwear industry, Under Secretary Sanchez thanked our industry for the economic impact we have, and the jobs we create, in the U.S. economy.  He stated that the impact of the apparel and footwear industry goes way beyond “the racks and shelves that most Americans see.”  Invoking the AAFA “We Wear” brand identity, he echoed our assessment that when Americans get dressed, they wear more than the clothes and shoes they are putting on.  They also “wear” the design, R&D, compliance, logistics, and intellectual property rights jobs that go into making those clothes and shoes.

Sanchez highlighted the importance of trade to the U.S. economy.  Roughly 95 percent of the world’s consumers live outside the U.S. and, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), 85 percent of the world’s economic growth in the next year will be outside the United States.  Declaring a truth that is fundamental to our industry, Sanchez stated, “We cannot be competitive without trade.”

Pointing to the recent second anniversary of the National Export Initiative (NEI), Sanchez previewed a number of trade initiatives being pursued by the Administration, including implementation of pending and existing agreements, negotiating new agreements with eight Pacific Rim countries, protecting U.S. intellectual property rights overseas, and dismantling foreign trade barriers, such as those being imposed by Argentina, Brazil, India, and Turkey.  He told us that he had heard a lot of the industry’s concerns on those and other foreign trade barriers, telling us “we’ve got your back” to help make sure these practices – which impose costs on U.S. companies and destroy U.S. jobs – end soon.  He also reminded us to visit the newly revamped IPR website – www.stopfakes.gov – to see the latest tools and resources that the U.S. government has to help protect U.S. intellectual property.

Sanchez welcomed new sourcing and export opportunities that will be created in the Trans- Pacific Partnership, and urged the industry to continue providing input on the ways to ensure that this free trade agreement can promote trade, investment, and exports in the 21st century.  He hailed the entry into force of Korea FTA – noting that 93 percent of tariff and apparel trade and virtually all footwear trade go duty free immediately – and hoped that we would see the Panama and Colombia FTAs take effect soon.

Sanchez also highlighted recent trends in which U.S. companies are making more products in the United States.  He called specific attention to the Maine footwear production of AAFA member New Balance, and applauded other initiatives – such as corporate open houses – that are looking to increase U.S. sourcing.  With a strong manufacturing footprint led by our AAFA government contractors, we welcomed this news.

AAFA members had the chance to question Sanchez on a range of topics including foreign trade barriers, the imminent expiration of a key provision in CAFTA-DR, foreign trade zones, and opportunities for the Commerce Department to more closely align its trade promotion and advocacy work with the current structure of the U.S. apparel and footwear industries.  To those and other questions, Under Secretary Sanchez affirmed the Commerce Department’s willingness to listen, eagerness to partner, and enthusiasm to help our industries grow and stay competitive.

This week AAFA had a chance to speak about trade politics and policies at the International Compliance Professional Association (ICPA) conference in Atlanta.  The conference presented us with a great opportunity to see AAFA members, and meet many dedicated compliance professionals dealing with a variety of international trade and customs issues.  The 800-plus attendees included customs brokers, trade consultants, freight forwarders, customs compliance managers for brands, and many more.  We look forward to continued collaboration with this organization and the group’s members.

Our participation in the ICPA was a good lead up to the 10th Annual AAFA International Sourcing, Customs, and Logistics Integration Conference in New Orleans this week as well.  The AAFA conference brings together many of those same compliance professionals with other apparel and footwear executives involved in sourcing and logistics to share best practices, learn about recent legislative and regulatory developments, and identify solutions to common problems associated with getting clothes and shoes from Point A (which is often half way around the globe) to Point B.  Like the ICPA, we deliver a very solutions-based program, which is no wonder why the theme of this week’s conference is “Practical Approaches to the New Normal.”

The individuals who attend these events are the real faces behind our "We Wear" brand that AAFA rolled out last year.  When we wear clothes and shoes, we wear all the product safety, the sustainability, the customs compliance, the logistics, the sourcing, and the many other disciplines that involved in creating today’s fashion and getting it to your shopping cart – whether it is online or in a brick and mortar store.  We often talk of the many, many U.S. jobs – four million at last count – that support today’s apparel and footwear industry.    The folks at these conferences represent those four million hard working Americans, and the families and communities they support.

The additional good news is that those apparel and footwear workers involved in compliance – be it customs, social responsible, human relations, and so forth – were identified as one of the top professions in a recent U.S. News and World Report listing of the Best Jobs of 2012.  Per the report, “Compliance officers are responsible for making sure business and environmental regulations are followed.”   At AAFA, we know that these individuals are critical to the survival of any company.  Sitting at the cross roads of government and business, they help make sure their companies avoid a wide range of legal and regulatory problems so their colleagues can concentrate on delivering affordable fashion to you at the right place, the right time, and the right price.   You may not see them, but if you are got dressed today, you know they are there.

As government regulations proliferate and become more complex, these individuals will find their work become increasingly complicated and their mastery of their craft progressively more sophisticated.  We salute the many compliance officials in our industry and congratulate them on a job well done.

As we prepare to kick off the AAFA Annual Executive Summit this evening, it is clear that the business decisions the U.S. apparel and footwear industry makes are driven by many of the political movements that happen here in Washington.  Before we set into our exciting three day program, I wanted to set the scene with the current state of play in Washington.  Follow along with the 2012 AAFA Annual Executive Summit unfolds at wewear.org/2012summitlive. 

While the stakes are high for President Barack Obama and his still-unknown Republican opponent, expectations for passage of any substantial piece of legislation are decidedly low for elected officials faced with the almost impossible task of governing a divided government in this highly contentious election year. Nevertheless, the floors of both the House and Senate will be the most prominent campaign platform of the next ten months as party leaders move to support their respective White House candidate.

With the complete withdrawal of forces from Iraq, the American people’s primary political focus continues to be the unstable economy, high unemployment, and the future of federal budget. Democrats and Republicans are able to publicly blame the other for the lack of effective progress on these issues as Democrats push the onus on House Republican leadership, while Republicans deflect blame on the White House. However, the GOP also finds itself in a problematic political position as the various candidates vying for the nomination are keeping the party fractured. President Obama, whether by crafty political maneuvering or on an account of great fortune, has been the primary beneficiary of Republican party infighting and stands a very good chance of winning a second term, if the GOP cannot find common ground and shift their attacks to the president.

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney stood as the clear front runner early on in the race. Then, three surprise primary and caucus victories by former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri completely changed the dynamic of the nomination fight. On March 6, all eyes were on the Super Tuesday results, where ten different states voted for their prospective nominees. While Romney won six states - Alaska, Idaho, Massachusetts, Ohio, Vermont, and Virginia – Santorum carried North Dakota, Oklahoma, and Tennessee, causing further questions about the support Romney will have with the Republican’s conservative base. At this rate, Romney would need to secure more than sixty percent of the delegates in the twenty-eight primaries and caucuses by June 5 to clinch the nomination before California's vote.

Politics aside, while many pundits are claiming that the legislative work for 112th Congress is already done for the year, Congress will be looking to move some measures such as a multi-year transportation authorization bill, defense authorization bill for FY2013, and the annual appropriations bills, which may once again be rolled into an omnibus spending package that will be left for a lame duck session of Congress.

Legislation that sought to give trademark owners and the federal government more tools to shut down foreign rogue Web sites is also not expected to reach the floor of either house this year, despite growing momentum to move the bills at the end of 2011. As strong as that momentum was, Isaac Newton’s Laws of Motion proved true as opposition from technology providers exerted an equal and opposite reaction to the support that would have normally allowed the bills to sail through Congress.

Overall, electoral pressures will continue to distract members, especially in the House where the leadership has scheduled several recesses throughout the year to allow members to go back to their districts to campaign. The Senate has already seen ten incumbents of the thirty-three Senate seats up for election announcing retirement. The most recent came from the three-term senior Republican Senator from Maine Olympia Snowe, whose announcement offered the Democrats a prime opportunity to take the seat held by the moderate Republican for the last seventeen years. In total, sixteen sitting Democratic and seven Republican Senators are fighting to keep their seats. If the GOP is able to win a net of four of those seats, then the party will retake control of the Senate. While most political pundits believe that this scenario could easily play out in the GOP’s favor, President Barack Obama is still polling strong against all of the Republican nominees. And the longer the GOP nomination takes, the better President Obama’s chances are of obtaining a second term.

Learn more about the issues important to the U.S. apparel and footwear industry by viewing our current legislative matrix.

During his testimony before the House Ways and Means Committee yesterday, U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk laid out the President’s 2012 Trade Policy Agenda.  In response to a question from Congressman Aaron Schock on the impact high tariffs have on consumers, Ambassador Kirk described what he sees as a dilemma facing American consumers:  “If there is anything in which we all agree, the real winners of trade liberalism are consumers. But even the American public has told us, they don’t want to trade cheaper t-shirts and tennis shoes for jobs.” (VIDEO - see 1:41:44 mark)

The reality is that Americans want both jobs and “cheaper t-shirts and tennis shoes,” as well as a wide variety of other fashion products.  And our industry provides both.  There are nearly four million workers here in the United States that work within the U.S. apparel and footwear industry who strive every day to deliver affordable, safe, and fashionable clothes and shoes to hardworking American families.  Because 98 percent of apparel and 99 percent of shoes sold in the United States each year are produced internationally, it is clear that apparel and footwear imports sustain and create jobs all around the country. 

And Ambassador Kirk clearly understands that concept, because on March 12, 2010, he provided a keynote address at our Annual Executive Summit right here in Washington.  During his presentation, he recognized the important role that imports play in providing valuable jobs to Americans within our industry. 

“But, as those of you in the industry know, if we took a look in the closets of most Americans, we would likely find that their clothes were made in a dizzying array of countries around the globe.

"But while many Americans may not know where their clothes were assembled, they know that their clothes are the products of American companies - because they sought out American brands. And the value-added design, marketing, and sales jobs required to produce and distribute those products are all based in the U.S.A....”

"The ultimate objective of all our efforts can be summed up in one word: jobs.

"When companies like yours are able to succeed in the marketplace that supports job creation here at home.

"When a shipment of your products arrives in America, an army of workers goes into motion. There's the port worker who unloads your container, the truck driver that carries it to a distribution center or a store, the marketing executive that trumpets its arrival, and the retailer who rings up each individual sale. And that's just domestic sales - every foreign sale you make supports American designers, customs and logistics professionals, and financing and transportation experts.

"So your success, and the success of every globally-engaged American company, is critical to the overall economic recovery.”

“Cheaper t-shirts and tennis shoes” should not be set up in a false trade off with U.S. jobs. As Ambassador Kirk knows, those t-shirts and sneakers, and other articles like pants, jeans, and dress shoes, are job creators and drivers of economic growth.

The AAFA government relations staff and I have been wearing out our shoe leather on the Hill this winter meeting on a range of issues to improve the competitiveness of AAFA member companies.  In just the six weeks that the second session of Congress has been meeting, we've met with more than 150 House and Senate offices on a range of issues, including the Affordable Footwear Act (AFA), the SAVE Act, export financing, Federal Prison Industries (FPI) reform, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), product safety, and intellectual property rights.  We've been working closely with other groups with allied interests as well as AAFA members who have traveled to Washington to meet with their senators and representatives.

Our advocacy work on behalf of the industry is especially critical in 2012.  With a few notable exceptions, Congress has had a hard time decisively addressing many matters during the past few years.  Consequently, the legislative agenda has become clogged with issues that are demanding attention and action.  Deep partisan divisions, election year distractions, and a shortened calendar suggest that Congress will not be very productive this year either.  The opportunities to advance our priorities will be few and far between.  It is with this in mind that we have redoubled our efforts -and time in the hallways of Congress - to push the issues that matter most to our members.

In my lobby meetings - most of which have been on the AFA and FPI reform - I have had the privilege to meet with Members of Congress and staff who were hungry for information on how these initiatives would generate jobs or otherwise help the constituents in their districts and states manage these tough economic times.  Armed with statistics from our We Wear brand identity, and amplified by the direct voices of our members, we've been able to show in increasing detail how these initiatives will benefit Americans throughout the country.  Representing an industry that supports roughly four million U.S jobs, and which is literally touched by every American, we can show a significant impact in each state and congressional district.

For the next nine months - until the election - and for any "lame duck session" that may occur afterwards, we will continue to meet with Congress.  I have long felt that the "squeaky wheel gets the grease" in Washington, and we intend to make a lot of noise this year.  I invite you to join us - either because you will be in town or because you want to make a special trip to advocate for our industry - to help make that noise too.

During this morning’s airing of Fox & Friends, AAFA Government Contracts Committee Chairman Michael Mansh reported that Federal Prison Industries (FPI) has decided to back off taking the contract to make the Air Force Lightweight Jacket.  During his interview, Michael was asked a very important question, “If prisoners can no longer take American jobs, then how will the Bureau of Prisons keep them busy?”  This is a very relevant question to the FPI debate, and we’d like to take a moment and provide some insight.

The mission of FPI is important, and we support the notion that inmates, upon their release, must have the skills required to successfully re-enter society.  However, when this program punishes the innocent, it fails both the inmates and the society to which they return.

Using these four simple guidelines, we believe FPI can both help educate and rehabilitate inmates while fostering opportunities for private enterprise.  Under this approach, Congress can continue to support the original spirit and intent of the law that created FPI by ensuring a safe prison environment, needed education, reduced recidivism, and a healthy economy once prisoners are released.

Educate

The Bureau of Prisons, which operates FPI, should enhance its educational and training programs to provide more skills to inmates.  Funds should be shifted away from Federal Prison Industries’ annually appropriated operating budget and focused on hiring teachers to ensure prisoners have high-school diplomas, which will set them up for higher education upon release or while still incarcerated.  This focus will not only benefit inmates, but provide many opportunities to create more teaching jobs.

Diversify

Under current law, FPI has the ability to serve all federal government departments, agencies, bureaus, and commissions.  But when we look at FPI’s clothing and textile sales numbers, FPI seems to focus solely on providing military apparel and combat gear to the Department of Defense.  The best way for FPI to continue producing for the federal government WITHOUT having an adverse impact on our domestic industry is to diversify both its products and customer base.  In other words, the DOD percentage of FPI’s sales should be no more or less than other parts of the government who require uniforms.

Self-Sustain

FPI should consider taking on tasks that enable prisoners to provide for themselves.  No better work ethic training can be provided than the pride of working for one’s self.  FPI should utilize its mandatory source preference to make their own uniforms, grow their own food, and build their own furniture.  If done correctly, these self-sustaining communities should have a minimal impact on private industry.

Limit

FPI should never control 100 percent of a product requirement.  FPI should be limited to producing only small percentages of certain items.  Moreover, the law should mandate that once FPI reaches certain sales thresholds in certain product categories, they are prohibited from acquiring future contracts.

The purpose of the program is to help the inmates.  The purpose is not for the Federal Prison Industries program to be a profit maker for itself.  The program is meant to educate prisoners, expand their knowledge base to something other than crime, and enable them to sustain themselves once released, all without having a negative impact on private industry.  It’s a fine balance, but we can achieve it.

Today marks an important milestone in our campaign to reform Federal Prison Industries (FPI), the government-owned corporation that puts inmates to work while in prison.  Overnight, we added our 500th signature to our “We the People” petition on the White House Web site urging for immediate reform of the unfair preference enjoyed by FPI.

With each passing day, the American people are becoming more aware of the Obama Administration’s contradictory rhetoric.  In his weekly address, President Obama reaffirmed his commitment to strengthening American manufacturing.  However, yesterday, we read in The State Journal that his administration is continuing its effort to overtake the U.S. domestic apparel manufacturing industry by further expanding FPI’s reach.

While we were delighted with last Friday’s news that, because of Senators Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul’s good efforts, FPI no longer intends to steal a job-sustaining contract from 100 workers in Olive Hill, Kentucky, we are reminded that there are “Olive Hills” all around the country that will continue to face threats unless we act now to reform FPI.

Join us in our efforts to rein in FPI and protect valuable U.S. jobs by signing our petition today.

During yesterday’s airing of Fox & Friends, AAFA Government Contracts Committee Chairman Michael Mansh, owner of Ashland Sales and Service, a factory in Olive Hill, Kentucky, discussed the need to reform Federal Prison Industries (FPI) and the threat this run-away federal program is having on small businesses just like his.

We couldn’t be more proud of Michael for taking his story public as we continue to fight for Michael, the 100 workers in Olive Hill, Kentucky, and the thousands of U.S. apparel manufacturing workers by urging the Obama Administration and Congress to work together and push back against FPI's growing share in the DOD clothing and textiles market.
 
The story Michael tells is outrageous.  Just a couple of weeks ago during his State of the Union Address, President Obama made a commitment to U.S. manufacturing.  However, his administration continues to pursue opportunities that allow federally-incarcerated inmates to take those manufacturing jobs away from law-abiding taxpayers.
 
If Mr. Obama’s manufacturing goals are going to succeed, the Obama Administration needs to reign in the activities of FPI, which currently enjoys an unfair advantage in its ability to take government contracts.  AAFA believes that if we want to jumpstart American manufacturing, then the jobs that we do have need to be protected.
 
It is time for federally-incarnated inmates to stop taking jobs from American workers.  As a start, join our effort to reign in FPI’s unfair preference by visiting www.wewearreform.org and sign our petition on the White House Web site urging immediate reform.

With less than seven hours until President Obama delivers his State of the Union address, the U.S. apparel and footwear industry will be looking closely at all of the themes in tonight’s much anticipated speech. 

Every president discusses job creation as a driver of economic growth.  Without exception, President Obama will expound on his job growth strategy.  Last September, AAFA sent our job creation strategy to President Obama in which we called for reform of the unfair preference enjoyed by federal inmates over taxpayers when it comes to Federal Prison Industries.  Allowing federal prisoners to manufacture the uniforms our troops wear as their first line of defense is a direct threat to U.S. manufacturing in our industry.  Simply reforming the contracting process will create jobs in our industry while serving our national security needs in the strongest way possible.  If we continue to weaken the domestic U.S. textile, apparel, and footwear industry by allowing federal inmates unbridled access to military contracts or pursue policies that weaken the Berry Amendment, thousands of U.S. jobs will be at stake.

As with any State of the Union address, President Obama is also likely to chart out his path forward on enhancing our competitiveness in the global market.  For the commercial side of our industry, job creation is directly linked with international trade.  In fact, four million jobs in our industry rely on trade.  With the implementation process of the Colombia, Panama, and South Korean free trade agreements underway and the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations hitting a critical point, the U.S. apparel and footwear industry will be looking to ensure we move on current initiatives as quickly and as smartly as possible while identifying new trade opening opportunities.   With 95 percent of the world’s population living outside the United States, reaching new customers is paramount.  In order to do that, our trade agenda must be clear and actionable.  Tonight’s speech is a prime opportunity to clearly demonstrate the value that international trade has for the United States.

My challenge to President Obama:  Make tonight’s speech about the policies that drive our nation forward and not about the politics of the campaign year ahead.  Industries like ours are counting on a clear path forward and not just a stop-gap strategy that gets us to January 20, 2013. 

For the U.S. apparel and footwear industry, everything.

Over the last few weeks, we’ve seen intellectual property take center stage in Washington, D.C.  What started as an attempt to disable networks of international counterfeiters who sell fake and unsafe goods to Americans quickly turned into a debate about Internet censorship.  With the future of the proposed legislation now in doubt, AAFA remains committed to working with the Obama Administration, congressional leadership, and industry stakeholders through AAFA’s Brand Protection Council in finding a common sense and practical approach to combating the scourge of counterfeiting.

Do not be confused.  The fight over the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect IP Act was about content sharing and copyrighted material.  In other words, stakeholders were concerned about Internet users’ ability to illegally download iPhone apps, news content, music and movies.  Counterfeiting and trademark infringement, a different component of intellectual property, remains a significant issue for the U.S. apparel and footwear industry.  As we’ve said all along, you cannot download a pair of boots from the cloud.

Each year, U.S. Customs seizes more counterfeit footwear, apparel, and fashion accessories than any other consumer good.  We receive complaints everyday about consumers not getting the product they thought they were buying online.  We hear story after story from consumers who have been fooled by legitimate looking Web sites that only result in stolen identities or the delivery of poor-quality or unsafe goods (if they receive the goods at all).

We look forward to continuing our work to ensure that U.S. name brands receive the strongest intellectual property protections all around the world.  We will be working with industry to develop a best practices guide aimed at combating online trademark infringement, educating consumers about the real and serious threat buying and wearing fake goods has on both their physical and financial health, bolstering existing IP theft solutions like the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center’s “Operation In Our Sites,” and exploring a path forward to seek out a legislative solution that helps protect U.S. name brands.

For consumers, AAFA offers an easy way to report fakes right on the front page of our Web site.  Click this link to report fakes directly to the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center. 

In his New York Times letter to the editor, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) argued that free trade has killed jobs, lowered American wages, and offered no other benefit for our economy.  That assertion could not be further from the truth.

For hardworking American families who wear clothes and shoes, and the more than four million U.S. workers it takes to help Americans get dressed each morning, the benefits of pro-growth trade policies are clear. 

That’s right, the U.S. apparel and footwear industry is proud to directly employ more than four million workers right here at home.  These workers are designers, logistics coordinators, retail associates, manufacturers, sourcing managers, merchandisers, marketing professionals, and more.  Nearly 10,000 of these jobs are located in Vermont.  What’s more, we do not include the countless other jobs and industries that support us as we deliver quality and safe product to consumers, like the drycleaners who maintain our garments, the workers who create laundry detergents, or the longshoremen and truck drivers who move our product to stores.

And these are well-paying jobs.  In fact, we found in a survey we conducted across the apparel and footwear industry in 2011 that the median annual salary was $70,000.  And as opposed to Senator Sanders’s position that trade has driven down wages, we also found median annual salaries are up 7.7 percent over 2009.

Because 98 percent of the apparel and 99 percent of the footwear sold in the United States is produced internationally, it is clear international trade supports these valuable and important jobs while providing other benefits for families and our economy.

According to U.S. Department of Labor Personal Consumption Expenditure data (research the government conducts on family budgets), Americans, on average, continue to spend an ever smaller percentage of their household income to buy more clothes and shoes.  In other words, families are getting more for their buck.

To say that all international trade has killed jobs, lowered wages, and offered no other benefit for our economy is flat out wrong.  Speaking on behalf of the U.S. apparel and footwear industry, harnessing opportunities in the global marketplace continues to be a powerful source of growth for the United States.  If anything, we need to be more aggressive in opening markets so the rest of the world can enjoy the famous U.S. name brand clothing and shoes Americans are proud to wear.

2011 ends as it began with an uncertain and unclear outlook for the year ahead.  The 2010 congressional elections, which swept Republicans back into the House majority and took away the Democrats’ filibuster-proof Senate, continues to set the political themes for the country as partisan tensions remain at all-time highs.  A persistently shaky economy and an unemployment rate hovering around 9 percent also play an integral role in this theatre as Republican presidential hopefuls publicly display party infighting, while simultaneously pointing to President Barack Obama’s still unproductive economic recovery plans.

As we watch it all unfold, the country also faces an identity crisis.  As the “Tea Party” movement proactively staked its claim and position in the country by dethroning many congressional incumbents in the last election, the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement has gained some notoriety by expressing many opposing sentiments.  Despite OWS’ ability to make parts of our cities look like 3rd World shantytowns, their existence underscores a serious lack of understanding and communication between political leaders and the people at large. So while both parties may equally share the burden and responsibility for the lack of economic progress over the last year, this antagonistic environment has also overshadowed movement on a few important policies.

In a year known for its lack of action, 2011 did mark a significant step forward in the trade area.  After years of unnecessary political rancor, President Obama finally submitted three Free Trade Agreements with Colombia, Panama and South Korea to Congress for approval. As predicted, the legislation was swiftly passed and signed into law.  While congressional passage and presidential ratification of these trade agreements signified a positive accomplishment for our government, it also highlighted the deleterious effect that politics holds over policy-making in a divided political environment.  The trade agenda for the next year will now shift focus to the Trans Pacific Partnership, a multilateral trade agreement that will include: Australia, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, Peru, Vietnam and the United States.  AAFA will also be pushing pro-job, pro-consumer legislation, such as the Affordable Footwear Act, the Outdoor Act, and the SAVE Act to ensure fair trading of apparel and footwear products, while simultaneously lowering prices on these goods for consumers.

This past year, the growing problem of rogue Web sites, foreign-operated sites that traffic and sell counterfeit merchandise, has come to center stage with the introduction of two bipartisan bills – the PROTECT IP Act and the Stop Online Piracy Act – that seek to end rogue sites’ access to U.S. consumers.  Almost immediately after introduction, politics took over and, much like the free trade agreements, the merits of the policy were pushed to the side.  Nevertheless, the issue will remain red hot in the new year as rumors are already circling that the Senate version, the PROTECT IP Act, may come to the floor as early as January.  Before adjourning for the year, the House Judiciary Committee tried to push its bill through committee, but the mark-up was delayed due to deliberations on the more than fifty amendments proposed by opponents of the bill.

Other hot items that will persist in 2012 include ongoing debate over fiscal matters, such as the budget and seemingly ubiquitous debate over income tax breaks.  Because the so-called “Super Committee” (officially the Congressional Select Joint Committee on Deficit Reduction) failed to reach agreement on $1.2 trillion in cuts over the next ten years, Congress and overall public debate on the federal budget will remain constant through the year.  A last minute deal on payroll taxes, job less benefits and Medicare payments to doctors – which extended current payroll tax rates until the end of February 2012 – means tax issues will be one of the first orders of business when Congress returns from its 2011/2012 recess.

With the last U.S. troops leaving Iraq in December, the Defense Department will be encountering new budgetary constraints especially with the threat of automatic budget cuts looming in 2013.  Nevertheless, defense industries will be clambering to hold onto all the work they have to ensure they can keep their doors open.  With that thought in mind, AAFA will be working to ensure that U.S. domestic military apparel and footwear manufacturers and their suppliers can continue to compete for DOD contracts without facing continued unfair competition from Federal Prison Industries. 

As these issues will be on the forefront of AAFA’s legislative agenda, they are interwoven with the country’s macro issues such as jobs and the economy.   The circumstances surrounding the 2012 election are already setting the stage for one of the most contentious GOP presidential primaries in history that will be followed by an even nastier general election.  As a result, AAFA hopes to make some ground highlighting these and other important issues for the industry, its employees and the country.

Many political insiders and media outlets have already called this first session of the 112th Congress one of the least productive in U.S. history.  Over the last year, Congress has cleared 83 bills, almost half of simply extended expiring laws (such as continuing appropriations or expiring tax or highway statutes) until later in the year.  With a presidential election coming at the end of 2012, and with partisan control of both chambers at stake, many believe that the second session will be equally as partisan and unproductive.

As Republican candidates continue to vie for their presidential nomination, President Obama begins his work to secure a second term.  Despite substandard poll numbers, the president stills hold strong pockets of support and any Republican candidate has an uphill battle in the race.  Nevertheless, Republican challengers are still competing for those early primary states in hopes of securing their party nomination in the summer.

It is unclear how the next twelve months may shape American policy and decision-making as the United States sets to elect new (or the same) leaders to advance the American cause.  In recent years, the electorate has been the audience to this political theatre.  Whether the upcoming elections will signal real change, or just the second act to this same drama, remains to be seen.

Full AAFA's full legislative matrix here.

AAFA Unveils New Brand Identity

In October, AAFA unveiled our new brand identity to better communicate our mission here in Washington and around the world.  Our new “We Wear” brand identity has allowed the Association to clearly communicate who the industry is, what the industry does, and why the industry’s work is important to the U.S. and global economy.   Throughout 2011, AAFA researched and developed a stronger way to define and express the value proposition AAFA delivers to the industry from Washington, D.C.  By doing so, the “We Wear” brand will improve AAFA’s overall effectiveness in Washington as the leading advocate of the U.S. apparel and footwear industry. Members are just as excited about the new brand as we are. 

AAFA Launches Improved Web Site

Following the announcement of our new “We Wear” brand identity, AAFA launched a fully-integrated Web site in November to serve as an enhanced advocacy and education tool as well as an improved communication vehicle with its membership and the industry at large. The new site contains many new features, including a new blog feature and member profile management tools.  Enhanced features include more user-friendly membership and supplier resource directories, along with an improved “AAFA on the Issues” section to help keep stakeholders up to speed on legislative and regulatory issues.  New site features will be unveiled throughout 2012.

AAFA Welcomes Approval of Long-Pending Free Trade Agreements

In October, AAFA and other international trade stakeholders applauded the long-awaited congressional passage and presidential signature of the pending free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea.  The agreements now move into the implementation process before entering into force.  AAFA continues to work with congressional leaders and the Obama administration to ensure the implementation proceeds as smoothly and quickly as possible in order for the U.S. apparel and footwear industry can begin using this important agreements to continue delivering safe and affordable clothing and shoes to U.S. families.

AAFA Travels the World to Educate the Supply Chain

In an effort to educate the apparel and footwear industry’s global supply chain, AAFA traveled across the United States and to Brazil, China, India, Bangladesh, Haiti, and Ireland with important product safety, sustainability, sourcing, and other industry trend information.  For 2012, AAFA will continue our aggressive educational series, including visits all around the United States and return trips already scheduled for China and Vietnam.  Check out AAFA’s full schedule of educational programs on the AAFA Web site.  To help in AAFA's international education efforts, in 2011, AAFA released the AAFA Restricted Substances List in Chinese.  In all the AAFA RSL is now available in English, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Spanish.

AAFA Partners with 24Seven on Salary Survey

In July, AAFA was pleased to partner with 24Seven on their annual salary survey.  Higher salaries, job mobility, and a strong emphasis on “quality of life” benefits are redefining the job market in retail and fashion, according to 24 Seven’s Fifth Annual Salary Survey.  The survey, conducted in collaboration with the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA), queried more than 2,000 professionals across the U.S. in all sectors including design, sales and marketing, merchandising, product development, operations, e-commerce and store level.

AAFA Applauds Introduction of Several Trade Measures

During the 2011 legislative session, AAFA welcomed the introduction of several trade-opening measures, including the Save Our Industries (SAVE) Act, the Affordable Footwear Act, and the U.S. OUTDOOR Act.  AAFA looks forward to continuing our push to get these vital pieces of legislation approved in 2012. 

AAFA Works to Level the Playing Field for Government Contractors

In June, AAFA successfully secured the introduction of the Department of Defense (DOD) Textile and Apparel Procurement Fairness Act (H.R. 2312), legislation that would level the playing field for government contractors who outfit American servicemen and women by limiting the government contracting preference currently enjoyed by federally-incarcerated inmates.  The legislation was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Representative Walter Jones (R-NC) and Representative Larry Kissell (D-NC).  AAFA will continue urging for passage of this legislation in 2012.  On February 1, 2012, AAFA will hold a lobby day on Capitol Hill and invites government contractors to participate.  Contact Kurt Courtney if you are interested in attending. 

AAFA Works Toward Stronger Intellectual Property Protections

On several fronts in 2011, AAFA has worked to secure the strongest intellectual property protections for U.S. namesake apparel and footwear brands.  Whether working to ensure the U.S. government and rightsholders have all the tools they need to shut down rogue Web sites that sell goods that violate brand trademarks, working with our trade partners to protect IP rights in other countries, educating consumers, or testifying on design piracy legislation, AAFA understands that the apparel and footwear industry requires a unique and comprehensive solution to intellectual property theft.

U.S. Apparel and Footwear Industry Raises Money for Prostate Cancer Foundation

It was a lively and energetic room when AAFA and nearly 700 attendees celebrated the 33rd Annual American Image Awards at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York City on April 27, 2011. Hosted by fashion stylist and television personality Robert Verdi, the event celebrated many of the fashion industry’s most influential brands, people, and humanitarians, and raised more than $1 million, with 40 percent of event proceeds benefiting this year’s charity partner, the Prostate Cancer Foundation. The evening’s awards included: Brand of the Year presented to William Rast; Footwear Brand of the Year presented to UGG Australia; Retailer of the Year presented to Neiman Marcus; Mark Weber, CEO of LVMH, and Chairman & CEO of Donna Karan International, presented with Man of the Year; Whoopi Goldberg honoring Ruben and Isabel Toledo as Fashion Maverick; and David Koch, Executive Vice President of Koch Industries, receiving the Humanitarian Award. For the 34th Annual AAFA American Image Awards, AAFA is pleased to announce our charity partner will be Madison Square Boys and Girls Club. More details and our slate of honorees will be announced in early 2012.

AAFA Push on CPSIA Amendment Offers Some Relief for Industry

Through vigorous advocacy efforts, AAFA helped to secure some relief for childrenswear producers offered by amending the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act. On August 12, 2011, President Obama signed H.R. 2715 into law and the Federal Register assigned it Public Law #112-28. This bill provides the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) greater authority and flexibility to implement current regulations without imposing undue burden on specific manufacturers. Moreover, it limits phthalate usage to only inaccessible parts and makes the new lead standard of 100 ppm prospective for children's products. In addition, it modifies third-party testing requirements.

AAFA Supports Small Business

President Barack Obama on April 14 signed into law H.R. 4, the AAFA-supported Small Business Paperwork Mandate Elimination Act, which repeals of the one of the most onerous provisions of last year's health care reform law. That provision would have expanded the 1099 reporting requirement to cover all business-to-business transactions over $600. The measure passed both houses by veto-proof margins: the House by a vote of 314 to 112 and the Senate by a vote on 87 to 12. If enacted, the requirement would have been a paperwork nightmare for all businesses and would have caused untold harm to the American economy. In addition to the repeal of the 1099 reporting requirement, AAFA also sought the repeal of tax withholding requirements for government contractors.

We marked the tenth anniversary of two key trade related dates this past weekend.

December 10, 2011 was the tenth anniversary of the entry into force of the bilateral trade agreement between the United States and Vietnam, and December 11, 2011 marked the tenth anniversary of China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO).

We welcomed these events a decade ago, and believe now more than ever that these events laid a solid foundation for key trade partnerships that support U.S. jobs, promote economic development, and foster international cooperation.

By joining the WTO, China agreed to live by international trade rules and we agreed to treat China like all our other trading partners. As with all trade partnerships, this one is not without friction. But WTO membership means we now have a clear set of rules to resolve those disputes.  WTO membership also fostered new opportunities for US exports and US branded goods by removing barriers to entering the Chinese market.  One of the lesser known beneficiaries of this new dynamic has been the U.S. textile industry, which has seen its exports to the Middle Kingdom climb 600 percent.  China now ranks as the third largest consumer of U.S. fabric and the second largest consumer of U.S. yarns.   U.S. cotton farmers have also benefitted as China now consumes one out of every four bales of cotton exported.  

Likewise the U.S. – Vietnam bilateral agreement set the stage for strong growth in this increasingly important partnership.  Vietnam subsequently joined the WTO and has become a growing market for US yarns and fabrics as well.  U.S. yarn and fabric exports to Vietnam have surged to eight times their 2001 levels.

We've seen these amazing developments occur over a single decade.  We believe the coming decade can lead to equally promising results.  Prospects are good.  Vietnam is a partner of ours in the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which aims to bring together a dozen countries into a unified Pacific Rim trading bloc.  China, with its growing middle class, is regularly identified as one of the emerging markets with the hottest prospects for both U.S. manufactured and U.S. branded products. 

Each spring, the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) hosts the Annual AAFA American Image Awards to recognize outstanding achievements within the U.S. apparel and footwear industry.  While it is always a great opportunity to honor top brands and industry innovators, the night is about more than the golden dress form trophy.  It is about our partner charity. 

For the 34^th Annual AAFA American Image Awards, I am very pleased to announce that our 2012 charity partner will be Madison Square Boys & Girls Club. 

Since 1884, Madison Square Boys & Girls Club has provided after school and summer programs to help build happy, healthy, and productive lives for thousands of New York City’s most vulnerable children.  Serving more than 5,000 children in Clubhouses throughout New York City, Madison Square Boys & Girls Club facilitates education, recreation, and guidance programs for children ages six to eighteen.

Our decision to select Madison Square Boys & Girls Club as our 2012 charity partner was based on the Club’s record of success in transforming the lives of the youth in the center of an American fashion hub.  Through goal setting programs that teach children valuable study and homework skills, the Club has been responsible for proven increases in high school graduation rates and significant improvement in grades and classroom performance.  The Club also educates children about healthy relationships and lifestyles, especially through their popular Aquatics Program.  (Here’s a hint about one of our honorees!)  In all, the Club helps to bridge the gap in New York City and sets vulnerable children on a path to realize their full potential.

We are proud of our strong partnership with Madison Square Boys & Girls Club as the 2012 charity partner for the 34^th Annual AAFA American Image Awards.  Watch this brand new video to see the far-reaching positive impact Madison Square Boys & Girls Club has on the children of New York City, and see how you can help Jhnoi realize her dream of becoming a fashion designer. 

We hope you will join us on May 7, 2012 at Cipriani 42^nd in New York City for this wonderful evening.  We will be announcing all of the upcoming American Image Awards honorees and additional event details soon.  To learn more about this event or to inquire about table information, please contact Sarah Raines at (212) 696-1100.

What started 70 years ago as a quiet Sunday morning and ended as “a date which will live in infamy,” December 7, 1941 reminds us of how complicated the world can be.  As we reflect on Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day and the lives lost that tragic date, and the sacrifices that have been made since that day defending the freedoms we enjoy as Americans, we are hopeful about what the future holds in store. 

Pacific Rim nations once torn apart by war are now coming together to build stronger relationships through the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).  From the TPP’s inception, AAFA has tirelessly supported an ambitious and commercially-meaningful agreement that creates market access for U.S. apparel and footwear brands, modernizes international trade rules to drive American competitiveness, and fosters greater international cooperation.  To help achieve a 21st century agreement that meets these goals, AAFA is proud to support the TPP Apparel Coalition and plans to submit more feedback to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.  As we work towards a living agreement that works today and tomorrow, and which builds strong partnerships that ensure cooperation and not conflict, AAFA looks forward to adding more nations to the TPP, including Japan, Canada, and Mexico.

"Haiti, cleared to invest" was the title of a successful investment conference sponsored by the Haitian Government, the Clinton Global Initiative, and the Inter-American Development Bank earlier this week.  Drawing more than 1000 participants from 29 countries, the Second Haiti Investment Forum (HIF) showcased numerous opportunities in apparel, footwear, tourism, and agribusiness in this recovering nation.

It has been said that Haiti has been dealt a bad hand.  Still recovering from a devastating earthquake two years ago, Haiti has faced more than its share of natural and man-made disasters.  A drive through the winding, hilly, and traffic-clogged streets of Port-au-Prince shows many signs of the physical and human devastation from the January 12, 2010 earthquake, including piles of rubble, the ruins of the Presidential Palace, and numerous tent cities.    Yet signs of rebuilding and a persistent – almost infectious – optimism are everywhere.  In a word, it’s an attitude proclaiming "anfom," creole for "everything's okay."

Great challenges remain for Haiti.  But the new administration of President Martelly – who spoke at the conference – is approaching these challenges with a sober and honest perspective in his effort to create a more predictable business climate while addressing key infrastructure problems. 

For our part, it was great to see so many AAFA members throughout the week, including many who have been long time partners in Haiti.  And we were happy to see some new faces as well.  With each apparel job supporting 10 Haitians, it is clear that our industry plays a powerful role in this country.  If we can grow the industry from the 28,000 Haitians today employed in the industry to the 100,000 which was the Haitian apparel workforce two decades ago, we can feed a million people, or more than ten percent of the population. 

This was especially evident in the Codevi facility run by Grupo M on the Haitian - Dominican Republic border near the port of Manzanillo.  Created from scratch, this impressive facility employs 6,500 Haitians making a wide variety of apparel and footwear for some of America's top brands.  Through its connection to the nearby Haitian town of Ouanaminthe - of which one third of its population depends on Codevi for their livelihood - Codevi tells an amazing story about sustainability, education, health, community, and the quality of life. 

In our three days in Haiti, we saw that Haiti is indeed cleared for investment. We also saw something else that is perhaps best described in a scene from the 1990 blockbuster Pretty Woman (at the 3:40 mark).  In that movie, Richard Gere describes how people react to opera after they see it for the first time. Some may grow to appreciate it.  But for others, opera immediately becomes part of their soul and it stays with them forever.  Traveling to Haiti is a bit like that.  For us at AAFA, Haiti has become part of our soul.

We hope more apparel and footwear companies can soon come to Haiti to see firsthand this amazing story.

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

These solemn words from the First Amendment outline the five freedoms that rests at the heart of American democracy.   All of us rely upon these protections - guaranteeing freedom of speech, religion, the press, peaceful assembly, and petitioning the government - many times each day.

Two in particular are near and dear to our heart. The ability to petition our government to seek redress of grievances is critical to make sure government officials are doing what we elected or hired them to do.  The ability to peaceably assemble gives individuals the opportunity to meet with and learn from others who share common viewpoints.  Whether those viewpoints are expressed in a Facebook group, a local PTA meeting, or a national trade association, these two rights give Americans an important tool through which they can educate public policy officials, seek government assistance, or make sure government initiatives help, and not hurt, us.

At AAFA, we are proud to practice those two First Amendment rights each and every day to make sure U.S. apparel and footwear companies, and their suppliers, can remain competitive in the global market, provide four million U.S. workers with good paying jobs, and dress hardworking American families with the affordable, safe, and quality fashion we know and expect.  Through our actions, these U.S. companies, including many small businesses that wouldn't otherwise have a voice, can be heard.

With this in mind, we remain puzzled as to why the Obama Administration seems intent upon silencing these and similar voices with new rules that will make it harder for government officials to attend association seminars, conferences, meetings, and other events.  In what can only be described as a direct attack on two of the five freedoms, new rules proposed by the Obama Administration this fall single out trade associations that employ registered lobbyists as organizations that government officials should avoid.  No similar restriction is contemplated for other lobbying organizations, such as unions.   And even though trade associations often maintain robust educational programs - such as the one we have here at AAFA – trade associations are also barred from an exemption to this restriction that is granted other educational groups that lobby, like universities.   Exercising our own first amendment rights, we are vigorously opposed to this dangerous idea. (View related letter with AAFA as signatory from the American Society of Association Executives)

To be fair, the Obama team says it wants to transform government to make it more accountable and open.  But insulating government officials from the very public it wants to access is self-defeating.

Yesterday, AAFA submitted the below letter to the editor of the Washington Post in response to Michael Gerson’s November 7, 2011 column on the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement.

Are you referring to me?

Just like many other organizations inside the Beltway, we always enjoy seeing our name in The Washington Post.  We were, however, a bit puzzled as to why Michael Gerson in his column (As radicalism creeps in, credibility retreats from OWS, Nov. 7) compared the Occupy D.C. movement to the size of our organization – the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA). 

By D.C. standards, AAFA is a small trade association.  We have just 17 dedicated professionals on staff.  But we have a pretty big footprint in the public policy world.  At AAFA, we are dedicated to the task of creating and sustaining U.S. jobs everyday by working to reduce barriers to trade, protect our industry’s intellectual property, support common sense and predictable regulatory environments, and promote social and environmental responsibility.

To paraphrase an old saying, “It’s not the size of the trade association that matters; it’s the economic impact of the industry the trade association represents.”  In fact, our impact is huge when you look at the size of our industry – the industry responsible for dressing Americans.  AAFA represents more than 350 member companies with more than 850 U.S. namesake brands in their portfolios.  In total, our industry directly employs more than four million Americans and accounts for $340 billion in retail sales each year, far greater than any other consumer product, including toys, video games, and soft drinks.

Just last week, AAFA launched a new Web site – www.wewear.org – as part of a major brand overhaul of our organization to improve our effectiveness.  As part of our new “We Wear” brand identity, we are inviting all Americans to join us in finding more opportunities for U.S. workers in the apparel and footwear industry and the consumers we serve.  Given the state of our economy and the impact our industry has on it, this is not the time to “Occupy the Closet.”

Perhaps Mr. Gerson included us in his column as a way to RSVP for the AAFA Annual Executive Summit being held March 14 – 16, 2012 right here in Washington.  We hope so because it will give him a chance to report on the positive things we are doing to create jobs and drive American competitiveness in a way that does not require a park permit.  

Respectfully,

Kevin M. Burke
President and CEO
American Apparel & Footwear Association

During the World Footwear Congress today in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, I will be joining colleagues from around the world in a discussion on global consumer behaviors and market trends, with focus on the Americas, Europe, and Asia.  As part of this panel discussion, my job is to focus on the state of the U.S. footwear retail market.  

As we’ve seen, the retail outlook for footwear in the United States has been a mixed bag over the past few years.  2006 represented a record-breaking year for the U.S. footwear industry when we sold more than 2.4 billion pairs of shoes at retail.  However, when the recession hit, we learned the hard lesson that new shoe purchases are often put on hold.  In fact, between 2006 and the peak of the recession in 2009, shoe sales dropped more than 17 percent.  With a glimpse of recovery in 2010, U.S. consumer confidence grew and footwear consumption jumped 14 percent nearing 2006 levels.  But we aren’t quite there.  So far in 2011, we’ve seen footwear imports slow as inventories begin to build up and price increases continue.

In terms of market trends, the most common theme we’ve seen over the last year is a shift away from China as a supplier to the U.S. market.  While China still maintains 85 percent of the U.S. market share for footwear imports, that number is down more than two percent over the past year.  And we’ve seen growth in nearly every footwear supplier to the United States, including Vietnam, Indonesia (which actually bumped Brazil from its number 3 rank), Mexico, and the Dominican Republic.  We’ve also seen tremendous growth from Cambodia, Bangladesh, and Nicaragua.  

With more than one million U.S. workers in our footwear industry, footwear sales at retail account for nearly $65 billion each year.  As the U.S. economy continues to strengthen, we are likely to see that number grow more and more.  At the same time, we must remain cognizant of the significant challenges that are ahead, including rising supply chain costs.  For the U.S. footwear industry, we can overcome those challenges by quickly passing the Affordable Footwear Act, common sense legislation that would eliminate hidden import taxes on most low-cost and children’s footwear, and seeking an ambitious and meaningful Trans-Pacific Partnership, a multilateral trade agreement currently under negotiation that would create market preferences and enhanced trade between the United States and eight Pacific Rim countries.  As the market remains uncertain here at home, the U.S. footwear industry is keenly interested in global growth.  U.S. footwear brands are the best in the world and should be given a fair shake.  AAFA will continue our work and eliminate barriers to entry that our industry faces when looking aboard, including the many protectionist measures in place to keep U.S. brands out of Brazil.

In October, AAFA unveiled our new “We Wear” brand identity.  Since then, we have been working hard for the next phase of our brand’s development.  Today, we successfully launched our new and improved Web site – www.wewear.org – to serve as an enhanced advocacy and education tool for you.  This new Web site replaces our previous site, so please update your bookmarks!

We think that this new Web site will help serve as the perfect storybook as we work to tell the story behind our new “We Wear” brand.  The new and improved features we have added will help key decision makers in Washington learn more about the issues important to our industry while providing greater opportunities for you to get plugged into key public policy issues impacting your business.

Check out these new and improved features

Member Login

For the first time, AAFA members will be able to log directly into their member profiles and better define their membership expectations, goals, and policy interests.  Members will also have the ability to manage their e-mail preferences in order to receive legislative and regulatory alerts.

Earlier today, we e-mailed members their login information.  If you did not receive that e-mail, simply click this link and select “first time logging in.”  The system will then send you your password.

We encourage you to login today and help update your profile with your interest and business needs. This will help your organization be found in more meaningful ways through our improved Membership Directory and Supplier Resource Directory.

Having trouble logging in?  Call us at (800) 520-2262 or e-mail membership@wewear.org. 

AAFA Blog

Through this improved site, we will now be able to provide real-time news and opinion updates to members and the industry with the addition of a new blog feature.  Not only will the new AAFA blog feature relevant policy updates, it will also serve as a news source on industry trends and market trends.  AAFA’s Elite Sponsors and other industry leaders will also be invited to provide thought-leadership on emerging issues. To make it easy for you to keep up with our blog posts, we will also include each week’s posts in the Newsbreaker.

Legislative Action Center

To help better engage you in the public policy arena we have improved the functionality of our Legislative Action Center to provide for grassroots mobilization on key and immediate issues.

AAFA has also grown its “AAFA on the Issues” section to better encapsulate more of the issues under consideration in Washington, across the country, and around the world that impact the industry as you compete around the world.  By equipping you with this relevant information, you will be able to make better and more informed growth-driven decisions.

Membership and Supplier Resource Directories

In addition to improving the site’s overall navigation, the Membership Directory and Supplier Resource Directory search functions have been significantly updated to allow for more succinct searches depending on specific needs by members.

Standing Member Survey

We want to always know how we are doing when it comes to living up to your membership expectations.  That is why we felt it was important to include a member survey that is always available for you to let us know how we are doing.  Let us know often.

Upcoming Site Features

Over the course of upcoming months, AAFA will continue to “unlock” new features and resources to help drive the U.S. apparel and footwear industry’s competitiveness in the global market, including fact sheets, key datapoints, and other helpful market-related resources.  The Web site will serve as the virtual hub of the development of the “We Wear” brand identity. 

Experience Technical Problems?

As with any Web site roll-out, you may experience broken links, links that direct to the wrong place, or missing content.  Please be patient with us as we work to fully populate our new site.  If you see any errors, please notify us at membership@wewear.org so we can quickly fix them.  We are confident you will benefit from our new and improved Web site because we created it with you in mind.

Visit the new AAFA Web site by visiting www.wewear.org. 

Since 2008, the U.S. apparel and footwear industry has experienced turmoil because of the overly-burdensome Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA)that have done little to promote public safety.  In July, AAFA testified before the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) about the need to set clear and predictable priorities for the U.S. apparel and footwear industry that will result in meaningful improvements to public safety but not unfair burdens on an industry that has a history of being safe.

AAFA has worked closely with the CPSC, Congress, and industry to bring about successful compromises that promote safety while not hindering business.  There may be some light at the end of the tunnel for the producers of children’s clothing and shoes.  In early August, Congress passed an amendment to the CPSIA that would turn the reductions in lead standards from retroactive to prospective, and would also provide the CPSC with greater flexibility in making risk-based determinations.  While this may be a step in the right direction, much more work remains to be done.

At the same time, we realize that the industry has an important role to play when it comes to the safety of our children.  As an industry, we understand that product safety is engineered into all of our products at the very beginning of the supply chain.  That’s why AAFA has spent the past three years travelling the world and educating the starting links of our supply chain about the importance of making safe and responsible clothes and shoes. 

Each conference, which is attended by between 300 and 450 factory owners, supply chain managers, and production supervisors, focuses on various global, national, and state product safety and chemical management regulations, as well as sustainability and social responsibility best practices.  When we first took these programs to China in 2009, then to India and Vietnam, we found that our industry was eager to engage our supply chains to help drive our competitiveness in the global market.  

This year, AAFA set a goal to double our international education efforts.  On November 30, 2011, AAFA will – for the first time – take our International Product Safety & Restricted Substances Conference to Dhaka, Bangladesh.  In recent years, Bangladesh has emerged as the third largest supplier of apparel to the United States, after China and Vietnam.  It is also a nation that has significant challenges to overcome, challenges that require an engaged industry that can help find a path forward.

On December 6, 2011, AAFA will then leapfrog over to Bangalore, India, to educate this growing supplier base about the product safety and sustainability values the U.S. apparel and footwear industry holds as a top priority.  For 2012, AAFA will hold similar events in China during the spring and Vietnam in the fall.  AAFA will also host a similar program right here in New York City in January 26, 2012.

The U.S. apparel and footwear industry understands that the easiest way to protect their brand reputation is to protect their customers.  At the same time, educating ourselves about new best practices and changing regulations must be a continual process.  I encourage everyone in our industry’s global supply chain to attend at least one of these informative programs.  These events are designed to keep you ahead of the curve and competitive as you seek growth in 2012 and beyond. 

Experts from this post originally appeared in the October 2011 issue of Fashion Mannuscript.