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Boston Globe

This Mass. company still makes T-shirts in the US. Its owner doesn't think tariffs will help.

Liquori's decades in American textiles have convinced him that his model would not work at scale. Not many Americans still want to painstakingly stitch together fabrics in a factory, he said. And Goodwear charges almost $60 for a basic t-shirt, more than eight times more than a comparable shirt made by Chinese fast fashion retailer Shein. Advertisement Goodwear generates an estimated $3 million a year in revenue, employs four people, and survives in part by exporting merchandise to Japan, where consumers demand authentic 'Made in the USA' clothing. Other clothing brands that still manufacture inside the US. include American Giant, Everlane, and Todd Shelton. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up However, any apparel maker that wants to be the size of Nike and make clothes in the US. is doomed to fail, Liquori said. That's a discouraging sentiment for anyone hoping Massachusetts can reprise its industrial dominance from a century ago, when mills in Lowell and other parts of Massachusetts employed tens of thousands. But by the late 20th century, globalization prompted apparel manufacturers to shift operations to developing countries in Asia and Latin America. Today, more than 97 percent of clothing sold in the US. originates overseas while only 2.5 percent of apparel is domestically produced, according to an advocacy and research group, who supports US. manufacturers. Advertisement Experts say returning apparel making to the US. in any meaningful way is highly unlikely, even with tariffs. By some estimates it currently costs $1- $3 in labor costs to make a shirt in China, Vietnam, and Bangladesh compared to $8 to $20 for the United States and Western Europe. 'Those are not the kind of jobs we want anymore,' said Thomas Roemer, senior lecturer in operations management for MIT's Sloan School of Management, who also directs the school's Leaders for Global Operations. 'We want upscale, better paying positions.' But back in the 1970s, when Liquori was a teenager, nearly all of clothing was US-made. He first became interested in apparel when he attended a silk screen class in high school. He offered to print his track team's name and logo on their t-shirts. 'Everybody took off their white t-shirts that they had on under their dress shirt and threw it at me,' he said. 'And they were all very excited.' In 1983, Liquori launched Goodwear USA and eventually sold shirts across the country alongside brands like Champion, Russell, and Reebok. However, the 1994 passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and China's decision to open its borders decimated the US. apparel industry as companies outsourced their operations to foreign labor. Fortunately for Liquori, Goodwear apparel became a hit in Japan where retailers and consumers demanded authentic Made in the USA merchandise. Advertisement 'Our phone was ringing off the hook more by virtue of we were one of the remaining people still making domestically,' he said. Goodwear was also able to control its costs because it never owned its own factory. Goodwear also worked hard to identify a group of factories still operating in the US. where it could easily increase and decrease its orders as needed. 'That's sort of our talent, vetting these vendors,' he said. 'These factories are becoming fewer and fewer but knowing how to pivot and use the people that are still alive in the industry is the testament to the Goodwear brand.' Liquori also said Goodwear produces higher quality, more durable clothing than low-cost competitors. 'If you buy a better-quality garment, it's going to last longer,' he said. 'You might pay $50 for one of our shirts, but isn't that better than buying a $12 Old Navy shirt four or five times over the next five years?' But experts say that argument, while valid, doesn't jibe with consumers today. Americans have become addicted to ultra cheap fast fashion that they can constantly dispose of and replace, said DeAnn Campbell, a consultant with Rethink Retail advisory and research firm. 'Americans no longer want to pay full cost,' Campbell said. 'We have come to a point where we are not going to give up cheap clothing without some extreme pain.' Brian Kelly, a former top executive with Sears and Lane Bryant, also thinks Made in the USA is no longer a compelling brand. 'I don't know if Made in America really resonates anymore,' he said. 'The current atmosphere has become an ugly place.' The challenges are real, Liquori said. Advertisement 'Consumers definitely care that it's Made in the USA,' he said. 'But then when the rubber hits the road … they'll just buy everything on price.' Thomas Lee can be reached at