For over three years, Eric Batt has served as the Center Director for the Apparel, Footwear and Textiles (AFT) Center strategically located in San Francisco, California. The AFT Center oversees the entry post-release trade activity for an industry sector comprised of over 74,000 importers with over $121.5 billion in annual imports. This year, Eric completed 27 years of combined federal government service with both the U.S. Customs Service and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).  During his early career, Eric served as an Import Specialist, Customs Inspector and Supervisory Paralegal Specialist in the Fines, Penalties and Forfeitures office. Eric has also held various management, liaison, and operational program positions at CBP Headquarters in Washington, DC for over seven years and formerly served as the Assistant Port Director of Trade at the Port of San Francisco.

Alice J. Buchanan is the Assistant Director of Partnership in the Apparel, Footwear, and Textiles Center of Excellence and Expertise (AFT Center).  When she began her career with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in 1992, she was learning fashion sketching, pattern drafting, and millinery at the Academy of Art in San Francisco.  Never did she imagine that there would one day be a CBP Apparel, Footwear and Textile industry-focused Center organizational structure for the processing of post-release trade activities.

Ms. Buchanan has 25 years of experience with CBP across a broad range of trade program areas. She started her career as an Import Specialist on the machinery commodity specialist Team at the Port of San Francisco. In 1998, she relocated to New York, where she worked as a National Import Specialist Assistant for handbags and luggage. While in New York, she studied fashion design in the evenings at the Fashion Institute of Technology. In 2001, Ms. Buchanan transferred to CBP Headquarters in Washington, D.C., where she worked and served for nearly eight years.  She was the Branch Chief for the Antidumping/Countervailing Duty (AD/CVD), Account Management, and Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) Coordination branches. During this time, she participated in negotiations for the 2006 U.S./Canadian Softwood Lumber Agreement, oversaw over five billion dollars in AD/CVD refunds, supervised the issuance of instruction messages from the Department of Commerce, trained National Account Managers and participated in the development of ACE and the ACE Business Rules Document. In 2009, she returned to San Francisco as a Supervisory National Account Manager.  In this position, she was a virtual supervisor of employees in other geographic locations.  She also researched, analyzed, and developed policies for imports of petroleum via pipeline. 

As Assistant Center Director of Partnership in the AFT Center since June 2013, Ms. Buchanan has participated in building the AFT Center from its inception to its current state.  She developed processes for the assignment and routing of entry summary and post summary activities.  With a focus on industry partnerships, she implemented account based processing for the AFT Center Partnership Division. Specializing in training and training development for the AFT Center, she has trained Center employees via webinar and in person in a variety of areas.  Ms. Buchanan works in the historic San Francisco Customhouse.  She enjoys living in California with her family and going to classical music concerts.

Eric Choy serves as the Executive Director for Trade Remedy and Law Enforcement at U.S. Customs and Border Protection, where he is responsible for threat assessment units, special investigations and enforcement programs focused on detecting, deterring, and disrupting illicit trade, with special emphasis on Forced Labor violations, evasion of special tariff cases, and civil penalties.

Previously, Eric was the Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Trade at the Department of Homeland Security responsible for policies and initiatives that enable the flow of legitimate trade, services, capital, and technology across our Nation’s borders to protect the economy and assure a fair, competitive, and safe trade environment.

Prior to his arrival at the Department, he served 23 years in the United States Army in numerous field and joint duty assignments in and outside of the Pentagon and around the world in Southwest Asia, Asia-Pacific, and North America. 

He received his Master of Arts from the United States Naval War College in Newport, R.I., and Master of Business Administration from the George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

As the Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Textiles, Natalie Hanson supports the Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Textiles in their duties to conduct and oversee trade negotiations related to textile and apparel products. Ms. Hanson also serves as a subject matter expert and provides input on trade policy matters related to the textile and apparel sector.

Prior to joining the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), Ms. Hanson worked at the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) in the Office of Industries with a focus on the textile and apparel industry, and served in a handful of positions for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). While at CBP, Ms. Hanson was a National Import Specialist (NIS) specializing in matters of classification and marking for outerwear and garments of coated fabrics, an International Relations Specialist in the Office of International Affairs, and as an International Trade Specialist for Textile Policy, where she was responsible for providing technical support to CBP and other U.S. Government agencies on matters related to the negotiation, implementation and enforcement of U.S. rules and regulations for U.S. imports of textile and apparel products.

Before joining the U.S. Government, Ms. Hanson spent more than 15 years as a textile trade policy consultant to U.S. and international clients including companies, trade associations and governments, providing information, statistical analysis and advice regarding market conditions and U.S. Government regulation of textile and apparel products. 

Ms. Hanson holds an M.A. from the London School of Economics and Political Science and a B.A. from the University of California, Irvine.

Maytee Pereira is a Senior Managing Director in the Customs & International Trade practice, located in New York.  She has over 30 years experience in the area of customs law and international trade matters and has assisted firm clients from myriad industry sectors including consumer and industrial products, Bioscience and Pharma, as well as apparel & textiles and footwear, involved in import/export activities in taking full advantage of both U.S. and foreign customs laws to minimize their import related liabilities while managing compliance with all applicable customs and export requirements. Maytee is particularly involved in developing and supporting customs valuation strategies that align to complex tax planning as well as in designing implementing streamlined global supply chain strategies aimed at minimizing overall duty expense for inbound and outbound clients as well as opportunities to leverage Free Trade Agreements (FTAs). She also assists clients in administrative proceedings and compliance audits before the U.S. Bureau of Customs & Border Protection (CBP), implementing Foreign Trade Zones and has preparing to participate in Customs programs such as the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT), Duty Drawback, Importer Self-Asessment (ISA), Reconciliation and others.

Craig is a Director in PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Customs & International Trade Practice based in Southern California. For nearly twenty years, he has advised companies on all aspects of cross-border movement of merchandise. This includes assisting companies involved in import and export activities to minimize their duty liability while ensuring compliance with all applicable Customs requirements. Craig has experience in identifying global issues and opportunities in the areas of valuation (including the coordination with transfer pricing), classification, trade preference programs such as NAFTA, country of origin/marking issues and global customs strategy. He has helped numerous companies identify cost savings opportunities, increase customs operational efficiencies and reduce internal control and compliance risk.

Craig currently assists companies in implementing and supporting the use of cost-saving strategies such as "first sale for export" valuation, foreign trade zones and duty drawback. He is involved in global customs structuring projects and in conducting internal compliance reviews. Craig assists companies in preparing for U.S. Customs Focused Assessments (audits), conducting C-TPAT validation reviews and supply chain self-assessments, merger and acquisition due diligence, working with external legal counsel in litigation cases, and trade agreement implementation.

Craig is a member of the Foreign Trade Association of Southern California, the National Association of Foreign Trade Zones, the American Association of Exporters and Importers and ICPA. He has given lectures on various customs and trade issues including the Focused Assessment Program, NAFTA, C-TPAT, Duty Drawback, Foreign Trade Zone program, Transfer Pricing, and establishing First Sale for Export programs.
Craig received his Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from the University of Florida and is a Licensed Customs Broker.

Thais is a Director with PwC’s Customs & International Trade Practice, advising US and multinational companies on various issues related to customs compliance and import-related duty, tax and fee savings opportunities. Thais has over sixteen years experience with PwC in different capacities, including 13 years acting as tax advisor in Brazil, supporting clients to address a variety of complex tax issues.

Thais helps clients navigate the statutory, regulatory and practical requirements, and assists companies in identifying savings opportunities and implementing transactional structures to realize savings. Thais support companies assessing their trade compliance functions, and to develop proactive, efficient operations at the local, regional and global level.

Thais holds a Law Degree and a postgraduate degree in Corporate and Tax Law, both from Brazil and holds a LL.M. degree in International Business and Trade Law from Fordham University in New York. Thais is admitted to practice law in Brazil.

As a Senior Manager with PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Los Angeles office, Lucy Wan is specialized in U.S. Customs and international trade consulting. She assists clients on complex international trade, risk management and regulatory compliance issues in connection with merchandise importing into the U.S. Lucy has significant experience in assisting clients navigate Customs’ Focused Assessment (Audit) Program, Quick Response Audits (QRAs) and Importer Self-Assessment (ISA) program.

With over 19 years of experience in customs and trade, Lucy's areas of expertise include customs valuation, classification, country of origin, various free trade agreements and special trade programs. Lucy also assists clients with global indirect tax and supply chain restructuring projects.

In the customs valuation area, she has extensive experience with transaction value, computed value (including Cost Submission), deductive value, First Sale for Export, and customs pricing between related parties. In the risk management area, she helps clients through complex customs audits and with the implementation of improvement plans. She also advises clients with Maquiladora operations in Mexico on customs valuation, country of origin and NAFTA/USMCA compliance matters.

Lucy's clients include large multinational corporations in retail, houseware, information technology, electronics, automotive, aerospace, pharmaceutical, and textile industries. 

Lucy is actively involved in the international trade community of Southern California, and served on the Board of Women in International Trade – Los Angeles Chapter. She is also a Board member of a community non-profit organization dedicated in youth education. 

Lucy Wan holds a B.A. in Hispanic Studies and a M.A. specialized in International Management. She  speaks Mandarin Chinese and Spanish fluently.