Made in the USA Cotton

Over the 4^th of July holiday Cotton Incorporated – the cotton industry association - and local Florida radio station got folks to wear cotton red, white, or blue tee shirts and stand in the shape of a U.S. flag.

Normally, I’d blow past yawn-invoking publicity stunts, but this one happens to fall into the realm of one of my crusades – driving awareness for products made in the U.S.A. According to the news release, the t-shirts were made in the U.S.A. by North Carolina-based TSDesigns from cotton made in the U.S.A.

From the news release: “Cotton Incorporated, famous for its ‘The Fabric Of Our Lives®’ advertising campaign, cites its ongoing Lifestyle Monitor™ survey as an indicator that cotton is the fabric of our lives in the United States.”

According to the survey:

83 percent of consumers agree that cotton and cotton blends are the fibers best suited for today's fashions

Nearly six out of 10 consumers (58 percent) are bothered that brands and retailers may be substituting synthetic fibers for in denim jeans, followed by tee shirts (56 percent), and sweatshirts/hoodies (53 percent); and

58 percent of consumers say they would be willing to pay a slightly higher price to keep cotton from being substituted with synthetic fibers in their tee shirts, followed by 57 percent saying the same for denim jeans, and 50 percent for sweatshirts/hoodies.

The Monitor survey shows that 60 percent of respondents feel that clothing made in theU.S.A. is of higher quality than clothing imported from other countries. Interjecting a personal thought here – I tend to agree. Even fabric made in the U.S.A tends to feel and wear better than imports. When shopping for sewing projects, I try to find fabrics made in America, but it’s hard.

"Today, less than five percent of apparel sold in the U.S.A. is actually made in the U.S.A.," said Eric Henry, President of TSDesigns. Based in Burlington, N.C. TSDesigns is a sources local cotton for its apparel products, which are then made – and sold – within the United States. "Seeing a U.S. flag made up of citizens wearing our tee shirts, which are made in America, is inspiring for all of us at TSDesigns. Hopefully the image of it will inspire all Americans to look more locally for their apparel needs.”

Source:  Cotton Incorporated via PR Newswire (http://s.tt/1h41m)