Important Information Regarding USFIA’s Website

As you probably know, we recently launched a new website with a new design and several new features. Starting August 1, you will be required to login to the website to register for events and access member discounts, including free webinars. This change will allow you to register for events with the click of a button, without needing to enter your information—and will mean less clean-up for us in our database! (Plus, you’ll be able to access members-only content including past news alerts and webinar videos.)

If you already know your website login, you don’t need to do anything else! You can login the next time you register for an event, or login anytime to update your information.

If you don’t have a login, you will receive an email in the next few days with your unique login information. You will be able to change your password and update your information when you first login to the website.

If you have forgotten your login information, you can use the "Forgot username?" and "Forgot password?" links to receive your username by email and create a new password.

Questions? Contact USFIA at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 202-419-0444. 

ICYMI: USFIA’s Fifth-Annual Benchmarking Study

This month, we released our fifth-annual Fashion Industry Benchmarking Study, conducted in conjunction with Dr. Sheng Lu, Associate Professor in the University of Delaware Department of Fashion & Apparel Studies. The study is long, but full of interesting insights on trade policy and sourcing—including your peers’ top concerns and sourcing plans for the next few years. Already, this year’s report has been cited by multiple international media outlets, and we will continue to use this data in our own advocacy and communications. Did you miss the study? Click here to download it on our website.

Malaysia’s Fashionable Future

This September, you’re invited to A New Wave, a showcase of the latest fashions from more than 20 women fashion designers in Malaysia, organized by the Malaysia Trade Office. You won’t want to miss this opportunity to get a first look at Malaysia’s burgeoning fashion industry—and support the women working to make it happen. Click here for details.

In Case You Missed It… 

July 11: USFIA hosted our lobby day in Washington, D.C. Several USFIA member companies went to Capitol Hill to meet with their U.S. Representatives’ office to discuss how trade and their global value chains create jobs in the United States. The day concluded with a reception hosted by Barnes & Thornburg LLP and GEODIS USA on our rooftop overlooking the White House, with more than 100 government officials, media, and other D.C. fashion insiders in attendance.

July 12: USFIA hosted our annual Washington Trade Symposium on Capitol Hill. The highlight of the day was the welcome remarks by U.S. Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-IN), a member of the U.S. House Ways & Means Committee, who discussed her commitment to trade policy that works for American companies and consumers.

July 13: The USFIA Board of Directors met in Washington, D.C. They elected a new Board member, Chris Lucas, Director and Associate General Counsel for American Eagle Outfitters.

July 18: USFIA and USFIA Premier Partner PwC hosted a webinar, Update on Customs & Trade in China.

July 23: USFIA Chairman Michael Singer of Macy’s and USFIA President Julia Hughes participated in the opening ceremony for the China Textile and Apparel Trade Show at the Javits Center in New York City. They met with CNTAC Vice President Xu Ying Xin to discuss the impact of the current trade uncertainty on sourcing partnerships between the United States and China. They also toured the TexWorld show floor and attended a fashion show sponsored by the Shenzhen Underwear Association. Click here to read more about it.

July 24: USFIA hosted a members-only strategy call, Next Steps on China Tariffs, featuring USFIA Washington Counsel David Spooner and USFIA Premier Partner PwC.

July 24: USFIA President Julia Hughes met with the Indonesian Trade Minister and a delegation of textile and apparel companies visiting Washington, D.C. The delegation was visiting to discuss enhanced trade opportunities with the United States, especially with expanded sales of U.S. cotton to the Indonesian industry. The Indonesian government officials were also meeting with Trump Administration officials to make the case for Indonesia keeping its Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) status.

July 26: USFIA and USFIA Innovation Partner Bamboo Rose hosted a webinar, Trade Wars, Tariffs, & Natural Disasters: Mitigating Retail Risk.

In the News

We have a stylish new newsroom on our website! Visit www.usfashionindustry.com/news/usfia-newsroom to see our latest press hits, including coverage of the fifth-annual Fashion Industry Benchmarking Study. And if you missed the Washington Trade Symposium, USFIA President Julia Hughes spoke to just-style about the day’s discussions.

Calendar of Events 

August 12-15 (Las Vegas, NV): SOURCING at MAGIC will take place at the Las Vegas Convention Center, featuring apparel manufacturing, component, technology, and service providers from around the world.  

August 14-15 (Atlanta, GA): USFIA President Julia Hughes will speak at the U.S. Customs & Border Protection Trade Symposium.

August 21 (Online): USFIA will host a webinar, Sourcing Trends & Challenges in 2018: Highlights from USFIA’s Annual Benchmarking Study, featuring Dr. Sheng Lu of the University of Delaware and Laurie Sutandar of JCPenney.

September 13 (Online): Save the Date for the USFIA State of the Industry Members-Only Briefing.

October 22-24 (Milan): Textile Exchange will host their annual sustainability conference, United by Action: Accelerating Sustainability in Textiles & Fashion.

November 7 (New York, NY): Save the Date for the USFIA Annual Conference & Member Meeting

November 8 (New York, NY): The USFIA Board of Directors will meet. RSVP to Samantha at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Millennials. Gen-X. Baby Boomers. The Silent Generation. Once, these generations were in agreement about the need for American internationalism. More recently, however, doubts have begun to surface among the younger generations. Speakers an event at the Cato Institute, The Clash of Generations, discussed the differences in policy opinions among the four oldest generations right now—Millennials (1981-1996), Gen-X (1965-1980), Baby Boomers (1946-1964), and the Silent Generation (1928-1948)—and the impact on American internationalism and policy, including trade.

Dina Smeltz, Senior Fellow at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, said foreign policy used to be an area where most Americans were in agreement, but since 2001, there have been widening partisan opinions, as well as generational divisions. The Chicago Council released a new study on this trend, focusing on generational attitudes toward U.S. engagement in world affairs, support for maintaining U.S. military superiority, and views on trade and globalization. While the majority of Americans consistently favor active U.S. engagement in world affairs, each generation is less likely than predecessors to support active U.S. engagement; sometimes, this difference split Millennials from older Americans; at other times, Millennials and Gen Xers both differ from prior generations. The Silent Generation views trade as beneficial for the economy, consumers, and job creation at much higher rates (79 percent, 82 percent, and 66 percent, respectively) than Millennials (73 percent, 80 percent, and 54 percent, respectively). However, it’s important to note that younger generations are actually more supportive of free trade agreements than older ones, with 62 percent of Millennials expressing support for NAFTA and 63 percent for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), while among the Silent Generation, 45 percent support NAFTA and 58 percent support TPP. (The entire study is available here.)

Will Ruger, Vice President of Research and Policy at the Charles Koch Institute, noted that as more people challenge the status quo of foreign policy, it’s interesting to see how the opinions of the generations will impact policy. For example, Millennials are less likely than older generations to think it’s important to maintain superior military power worldwide, friendlier to cutting defense spending, and less likely to see the United States as threatened by other world powers. It remains to be seen whether Millennials will pursue a new approach to foreign policy, a less militarized version focused more on engagement in the world through diplomacy and trade.

Trevor Thrall, Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute and Associate Professor at George Mason University, said the study reveals the differences that exist between generations, but the next step is discovering why the differences exist. There are several hypotheses that are part of the answer. First, as people age, they tend to become more engaged in what is happening in the world. Second, period events may lead to either more engagement, or a step back from engagement, temporarily, and older generations are generally less concerned about period events than younger ones. Third, social and demographic changes and cohort effects can have an impact.

So, where does this lead us? Should the United States take an active role in world affairs, and what does that role look like? Smeltz said very few of the survey respondents said the United States should have no leadership role, and while opinions do differ on how the United States should be engaged, the consensus is that there will continue to be engagement. Most importantly, concluded Ruger, it’s important to continue to have an open discussion with all generations.

Click here to read the study from the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.

USFIA Communications Coordinator Molly McNulty contributed to this report.

Last month, USFIA and the UN Global Compact hosted a roundtable on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As corporate sustainability becomes mainstream and awareness of the SDGs grows rapidly, you may be wondering why you should align your program with the SDGs, and what do next. 

Why should you align your corporate sustainability efforts to the Sustainable Development Goals?
The SDGs provide a powerful plan of action for humanity to solve our toughest challenges by the year 2030: poverty, inequality, climate change, and more. Business can and must play a role. The SDGs provide a shared roadmap for all sectors of society from all corners of the globe to work toward the same 17 goals. Companies that are making the SDGs a priority on their strategic agenda are discovering new business opportunities, attracting and retaining employees, gaining efficiencies, and ensuring their license to operate. 

How can the UN Global Compact help you?
As the UN's corporate sustainability initiative, we have the tools & resources, expertise, global reach and local networks to translate the SDGs for business and help you create and implement a sustainability strategy aligned with the SDGs. One of the tools we shared is the SDG Compass. The SDG Compass is a practical, 5-step management model designed to help companies understand, prioritize, set targets, take action, and communicate their core business activities that help achieve the SDGs.

Below, you’ll find a sampling of the UN’s working groups, tools, and upcoming events in New York. 

USFIA Roundtable Materials:

• UN Global Compact Workshop Presentation
• UN Global Compact Presentation on Engaging the Fashion Industry
• Goal 12 Handout
• SDG Workshop Handout

Events:

• 17 July | SDG Business Forum 
• 24 September | UN Global Compact Leaders Summit

Tools & Resources:

• Guide to Traceability in Global Supply Chains
• Code of Conduct and Manual for the Fashion & Textile Industry
• Gender Gap Analysis Tool

Working Groups:

• Water Stewardship Apparel Initiative
• Decent Work in Global Supply Chains
• Science-Based Targets

The UN Global Compact invites you to get more involved and take action by joining as a corporate participant. Contact Claire Kells, Senior Manager of Participant Engagement, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for more information.

Mr. Steve Goes to Washington

In April, Levi Strauss & Co. was among the companies who came to Washington, D.C., for the U.S. Global Value Chain Coalition Fly-In. He wrote about his first time lobbying Members of Congress and staffers to educate them on the impact of policy on American jobs in our industry. Click here to read his blog post on the Levi Strauss & Co. website.

Do you want the chance to speak with your Member of Congress about trade policy? USFIA members are invited to our lobbying day on July 11^th, the day before the Washington Trade Symposium on Capitol Hill. Click here for more information.

PwC’s Trade Intelligence Asia Pacific for April/May 2018

USFIA Premier Partner PwC has published its bimonthly trade intelligence on the Asia Pacific region. This issue covers topics including details on New Zealand’s new Customs & Excise Act, customs valuation rulings in Taiwan, and “on-the-spot” export and reimport in Vietnam. Click here to download it.

Calendar of Events

July 11 (Washington, D.C.): USFIA will host our lobby day on Capitol Hill. The lobby day will be followed by a networking reception hosted by Barnes & Thornburg, with support from GEODIS USA. For information about the lobby day, contact Sarah Raney at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 202-419-0444.

July 12 (Washington, D.C.): USFIA will host the Washington Trade Symposium on Capitol Hill.

July 13 (Washington, D.C.): The USFIA Board of Directors will meet. RSVP to Samantha at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

July 18 (Online): Save the Date! USFIA and USFIA Premier Partner PwC will host a webinar on what’s next for the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

July 26 (Online): USFIA and USFIA Innovation Partner Bamboo Rose will host a webinar, Trade Wars, Tariffs, & Natural Disasters: Mitigating Retail Risk.

November 6-7 (New York City): Save the Date for the USFIA annual conference and member meeting in New York City. We’ll announce more details in August.

November 8 (New York City): The USFIA Board of Directors will meet.