Below is the latest edition of Modern Retail’s Supply Chain Weekly newsletter, which goes out on Mondays at 10 a.m. ET, and dives into all things logistics and supply chain during a tumultuous time for the retail industry. To receive this weekly in your inbox, click here.Tariffs have yet to bring back U.S. manufacturing. But in the apparel industry, some executives see AI-powered robotics as a way to help boost domestic production.
While President Donald Trump’s tariff actions aimed to revive “Made in the USA” manufacturing, that has yet to materialize based on import numbers that show increases in goods coming from Asian countries like Vietnam and Cambodia, as well as Europe and Mexico.
Bjorn Bengtsson, chief product and supply chain officer at apparel brand Untuckit, said the company used to have more products coming from China. But tariffs changed the math on imports and caused some partners to relocate to places like Vietnam, India and Madagascar.
Such moves are incredibly challenging for brands to undertake no matter where they land, Bengtsson said. “[China] is the No. 1 country for apparel manufacturing because the quality is excellent and the service is excellent,” he said. “So as soon as you move out of that region, you’re definitely going to encounter issues.”
