After decades of manufacturing in the United States moving overseas, there are calls to bring it back. But doing that is not straightforward. WSJ’s Suzanne Kapner and the founder of American Giant explain how that company produced inexpensive T-shirts in the U.S. Further Reading: -How a $12.98 T-Shirt Is Made in America—at a Profit Further Listening: -How One Business Owner Is Getting Ahead of Trump's Tariffs -China, an Alabama Business and a 20-Year Battle Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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My colleague Suzanne Kappner covers retail, and recently she wrote about one particular shirt sold at Walmart. It showed up in stores last summer for the Fourth of July. Can you describe the shirt?
Sure. It's a 100% cotton t-shirt. It has the words American Made on the front, and there's a little American flag patch near the hem on the bottom.
At first glance, it looks like any other patriotic T-shirt. What stood out to Suzanne, though, were two things. First, the shirt's price, $12.98. And second, its origins.
What's remarkable is that it was entirely made in the United States. The cotton was grown here. It was ginned. It was dyed. It was sewn all in the U.S.
Is that unusual to see an inexpensive item of clothing made in America? It is very unusual these days, yes. There's been a lot of talk about trying to move more manufacturing back to the U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has proposed sweeping policy changes to try to make that happen. Everything from 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada to upending trade deals.
But getting more things made here can be complicated. And no one knows that better than the guy who got that T-shirt on the rack in the first place. Did you think that you would make a T-shirt in America that sells for $13?
If you'd asked me that a year and a half ago, I would have said, no way.
Welcome to The Journal, our show about money, business, and power. I'm Jessica Mendoza. It's Friday, January 3rd. Coming up on the show, how one company made an affordable T-shirt in the USA. The guy who made that shirt at Walmart is Bayard Winthrop.
My name is Bayard Winthrop, and I'm the founder of American Giant.
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