19 Aug Four Must-Watch Sourcing Hot Spots
While China still dominates sourcing, the tide is slowly turning to alternative regions. It’s a well-documented trend that as Chinese labor costs grow and its labor market shrinks, brands are seeking options to support their production. In addition to those pressures, the West Coast ports slowdown at the start of 2015 pushed more companies to diversify where and how they make their products, with 2014 the fifth year in a row that exports from China declined.
“The strategy of China plus one, two or three [locations] has been a big one for footwear,” said Matt Priest, president of the Footwear Retailers & Distributors of America. “Each of these other countries is interesting and has its own benefits and challenges, but none can equal Chinese capacity and output.”
While Vietnam and Indonesia remain top-tier secondary areas to source footwear…
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