Made in the USA
WRITTEN BY LIZ FARIAS
COVER PHOTO: LABELWEAVERS ON ETSY
Made in USA– why is this label so hard to come by if the United States is the second-largest exporter in the world? According to the American Apparel and Footwear Association, over 95% of the clothing produced in the United States is made overseas. It didn’t used to be this way. In the 1960s, the majority of American clothing was made domestically. But over the past few decades, the fashion industry has become a case study of how globalization, deregulation, and the race to the bottom reshaped what we wear. Cheap labor and mass outsourcing may have made fashion more affordable, but it came at a steep cost: environmental destruction, the erosion of workers’ rights, and a loss of accountability across sprawling global supply chains.
How the U.S. Outsourced Its Fashion Industry
The shift began in the 1970s, when a mix of geopolitical events, financial reforms, and trade policy changes started to rewrite the rules of global commerce. But first, what even was the system we were shifting from? After World War II, countries created a deal called the Bretton Woods system to keep global money stable. It basically meant everyone’s currency was tied to the U.S. dollar, and the dollar was tied to gold ($35 per ounce of gold). This gave the world a fixed exchange rate, which made international trade less chaotic. By the late '60s, the system was falling apart. Countries wanted to cash in their U.S. dollars for gold, but the U.S. didn’t have enough to cover it all. In 1971, President Nixon pulled the plug.
That decision ended Bretton Woods, let currency values float freely, and opened the door for global capital to move wherever profits looked best. As historian Elizabeth Ingleson explains, this new system made it easier for corporations to invest in manufacturing wherever labor was cheapest. Congress then passed the 1974 Trade Act, which delegated more authority to the executive branch, often prioritizing foreign policy over domestic labor protections.
By the time the North American Free Trade Agreement was signed and China was granted Most Favored Nation status in the 1990s, the groundwork for mass offshoring had long been laid. American firms that once built goods to sell abroad were now restructuring their entire production models around foreign labor. Container shipping technology and diplomatic pressure from China further accelerated this transition. Textile outsourcing became the norm. And with it, over 80% of U.S. apparel and textile jobs disappeared between 1979 and 2019.
Offshoring made clothes cheaper, but it also made the supply chain harder to trace. The faces behind our fashion became distant, hidden behind layers of subcontractors, stripped of rights and recognition.
Policing Child Labor (or Not)
Within its borders, the U.S. has strict laws around child labor, worker safety, environmental protection, and product labeling. Kids under 14 can’t legally work most jobs, hazardous work is off-limits for minors, and employers are required to follow federal rules on minimum wage, overtime, and safe working conditions. Factories must meet standards set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates harmful chemicals and pollution. Even fabric tags must disclose fiber content and care instructions.
But here’s the catch: those rules stop at the border. The clothes we wear are mostly made in countries that don’t share the same protections. While the Department of Labor tracks which goods are likely made with child or forced labor, there’s little real enforcement.
Brands often rely on self-policing or third-party audits that lack transparency and can be easily manipulated, with little accountability when violations are uncovered. One award-winning documentary that captures this disconnect vividly is the 2005 Mardi Gras: Made in China. The film follows the life cycle of Mardi Gras beads. From wild street celebrations in New Orleans to the factories in Fuzhou, China, teenage girls work grueling 14-hour shifts for just $2 a day, often at the expense of their education. Beads that take days to assemble are tossed to the ground within seconds of being used.
PHOTO: MARDI GRAS: MADE IN CHINA
It’s a sharp reminder that while the U.S. has laws protecting workers here, it does little to ensure those same rights exist for the people making our stuff elsewhere.
Meanwhile, “Made in USA” claims are heavily regulated. According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), a product can only be advertised as fully “Made in USA” if “all or virtually all” of it is made in the United States. That means final assembly happens here, and nearly every part and process, down to materials and labor, has to be U.S.-based. If even one major component is imported, like a motor or fabric, that claim becomes deceptive. Brands can still use qualified claims like “Assembled in USA” or “Made with U.S. and imported parts,” but they have to be honest and specific. Misleading language or throwing an American flag on packaging without meeting these standards? That can get a company fined.
Why Local Production Matters
Keeping fashion production within the U.S. isn’t only about jobs but also about ensuring our values. Local manufacturing allows for more oversight, better labor protections, and reduced emissions from long-distance shipping. Still, reshoring sustainably isn’t easy. Labor costs are higher. Infrastructure has eroded. Who knows where AI will go? And most consumers aren’t yet ready to pay the true cost of ethically made garments. It would require a massive cultural shift, one that challenges our addiction to cheap clothes and constant newness.
Who’s Doing It Differently
Some brands are already paving the way. Through small-batch production, transparent sourcing, and worker ownership models, they’re proving that fashion can be made locally and with intention.
Take Los Angeles Apparel, for example. Based in LA, the brand employs skilled workers, clearly outlines their wages, and sources materials from domestic farmers and yarn suppliers. I own one of their hoodies, and it’s super comfortable.
Another brand I’ve been eyeing is Verconiik, a Brooklyn-based knitwear label founded and creatively directed by Lindsay Vrckovnik. They specialize in slow fashion “off-calendar” drops, supporting local craftspeople and sourcing yarn from regional farms as well as leftover cone yarn from Italian mills. Verconiik is also transparent about where their garments are produced, including factories both in and outside of the U.S.—their new Cut n Sew line, for instance, is made in Dongguan, China.
No brand is perfect, but I do think transparency matters, even when it’s not cute. Sourcing or producing outside the U.S. shouldn’t be demonized; many of my favorite makers live and work abroad. But what should be prioritized is building a more personal relationship with the people and processes behind what we buy.
Fashion doesn’t have to be exploitative. But creating something better means asking more questions: Who makes our clothes? How are they made? And why did we ever stop doing it ourselves?
SOURCES:
DeFeo, J. W. (2019, December 21). America still makes things [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://www.johnwdefeo.com/articles/america-still-makes-things
Jones, T. R. (2024, May). From exports to imports: How corporate America changed its views on trade in the 1970s. American Affairs Journal. Retrieved from https://americanaffairsjournal.org/2024/05/from-exports-to-imports-how-corporate-america-changed-its-views-on-trade-in-the-1970s/
Redmon, D. (Director). (2005). Mardi Gras: Made in China [Film]. Carnivalesque Films.
Salfino, C. (2022, June 30). Consumers: It matters where fashion is made. Sourcing Journal. Retrieved from https://sourcingjournal.com/topics/lifestyle-monitor/made-in-usa-fashion-grown-and-sewn-rob-magness-gitman-bros-353188/
