When it comes to apparel it isn’t as easy as you think to support made in the USA. Walk into any retailer larger or small and you’ll be hard pressed to find 1 piece of clothes made in the USA, yet there is still tons of product that is made here. Fun fact North Carolina is the #1 textile producing state in the US. It is the epicenter of innovation in multiple industries and entrepreneurship. It’s a place I’m proud to call home.
As I started writing this issue I did a little exercise and picked 1 drawer which was filled with t-shirts to see just how many were made in the USA. Of the 20+ t-shirts I own which came from conferences, small businesses, gym’s, fundraisers, vacations and more–only 2 of them were made in the USA 🤯. (I obviously excluded all of my TS Design shirts which are all made in the USA with a transparent supply chain.)
So how can you support Made in the USA? As a consumer you can continue to put pressure on brands to have more of their product made in the USA, but that can feel a little daunting and the change can feel slow moving. You do, however, have a bit more impact on where you have your t-shirts made. Yes, t-shirts! Think about it, where do you order your company shirts? As I mentioned above, most of the t-shirts in my collection came from small businesses, non-profits, fundraisers and team sports. This is where your buying power is; and where you can impact greater and more direct change while also supporting small business as well as made in the USA.
Chances are your shirts already came from a small business. Do they offer made in the USA product or can you request it be added to their product offering? If you have any questions or want some tips on what to look for or ask for when ordering t-shirts, shoot me an email and I’d be happy to help.