The American textile industry has moved much of its operations offshore in the pursuit of lower labor costs. Textile imports have risen from under 5% of all textile production in the early 1960s to over 95% today. Offshore manufacturers make long runs of standard mass-market apparel items. These are then brought to the United States in container ships, requiring significant time between original order and delivery. As a result, retail customers must accurately forecast market demands for imported apparel items.

Assuming that you work for a U.S.-based textile company, how would you recommend responding to the low-cost imports?