american made

There Are Still Products Being Made Only In America, say Manufacturers
by Charlene Nelson, Fashion Editor

   As the hosiery industry continues to grapple with increasing pressure from global trade, American manufacturers are finding that quality and innovation in yarn and equipment as well as expertise in new development are giving domestic manufacturers an edge.

   While the competitive edge still rests on the ability to ship small orders and guarantee quality, event eh manufacturers who are using foreign sources for commodity products report that the Chinese and other foreign manufacturers just can't make some products.

   China falls short in at the least three categories, say manufacturers:  400 n. products, high-tech and sports-specific socks and medical legwear.

   Although foreign manufacturers may imitate the products, the quality, styling and performance cannot be imitated because foreign manufacturers don't the the control over production of the yarns and fibers and are lacking proper machinery.  American manufacturers also have a better handle on product development, especially when working with clients wants specific products. 

   "Kayser-Roth's knitting equipment is state-of-the-art.  As a result of our high-tech machines and automation, we have increased control over our product and quality," says Alison Hessert of Kayser-Roth.  "In contrast, one of the reasons China's overhead is so low is that they buy old machines.  As we make our own yarns in the U.S., we are able to control and monitor not only the quality of the products but also of our yarns."

   Kayser-Roth purchases very little 400 n. product from China because the yarns used in the United States are far superior, says Hessert.

  "We have not seen much innovation in 400 n. products coming out of China.  The only styles that generally consider developing and manufacturing in China are styles needing beading or other applications.  The problem is that the leg yarns, especially for sheer hoisery, are never as premiums as we would like for these products."

   China doesn't compete well in pantyhose size and fit eighter, says Hessert.

   "Pantyhose styles also are very fit and color sensitive -- two areas where China seems to consistently fall short.  Our color-matching skills are far more advanced, and there is little tolerance in sheer hosiery for off-shade, " explains Hessert.

   "U.S. sizing is very different from that of Europe and China, there, while they can come close to matching, our U.S- made product is much more accurate in terms of fit."

   Kayser-Roth's new Breathable Comfort hosiery, which offers control top support with "airy comfort", is a perfect example, says Hessert as well as HUE's Clear Control Lace Panty with Invisible Control, HUE's Age Defiance and Calvin Klein's Zero Waistband.

   Yarn technology as well as expertise in product development and manufacturing is why Gold Toe Brands make its women's line of All Day Comfort dress/casual socks in the United States.

  "These products are knit here because of how the yarn needs to be spun by the spinner, a domestic source, in order to meet our quality standards and to make it where we can run it on typical knitting machines." explains Steven Boyd, Told Toe Brands Inc. Marketing Manger.  "Also, due to the fact it was developed here, we have the expertise on the manufacturing floor and in product development to address any problems quickly and to create new products with this yarn along the way."

   "Gold Toe ADCO (All Day Comfort) is the first and only line of women's dress/casual socks to feature Outlast phase change fabric technology," says the company.  "Because Outlast is a smart fabric that absorbs excess body heat when too much is created and releases heat when needed most.  Gold Toe ADC socks provide 'climate control for your feet."

   Gold Toe has been producing an All Day Comfort men's line which is in most major department stores, for the past two years.  the women's styles will launch at the end of August.

   In the sports-specific category, proprietary yarns and product development unique to domestic manufacturing is not being match by foreign producers, say domestic manufacturers.

    Product development expertise and the ability to communicate well with the customer are things foreign manufacturers just can't compete with, says Susan Huitt of Huitt Mills.

  The Hickory, NC--based manufacturer which offer only 100 percent USA-made products, is working with the owner of a specialty apparel and footwear line to develop high-performance fibers for a line of sports specific socks which will be available in August.

   "We are combining innovative fibers with unique design for a specialty sports market.  Our new socks line will compliment the existing line of products that the customer already has developed.  The yarns will offer the wicking, anti-microbial and therapeutic characteristics that these active sports require combined with the design knowledge of people who know the sports," explains Huitt.

   Sports-specific manufacturer, Thorlos, which makes all its products in North Carolina, uses variable density padding and unique proprietary yarns to product high-tech sports socks that are unique to the Statesville, NC-based company, according to Company Spokesperson Katie Cavicchio.

   "Thorlos creates the machines to sew these sock where - as if they were outsourced to a factory everything would be made the same," explains Cavicchio.  "Each Thorlos products features padding in the places you need them the most to protect against shears and blisters."

   Thorlos produces socks a variety of sports, snow sports and outdoor activities as well as casual and dress socks.  The socks come in three levels of protection, allowing the consumer to select the protection that best fits his level of activity depending upon the degree of difficulty.

    "For example, there are three levels of protection available in the running socks depending upon the length of the run and the terrain," explains Cavicchio.

   The company's newest introduction is the Ultra Lite Hikers for women made with Coolmax™.

   Medical legwear is another market not being penetrated by foreign producers, primarily because the marketplace does not want to purchase large quantities of medical hosiery that target specific ailments, according to Peter Menzies of Menzies Southern Hosiery in Hickory, NC.

   "Medical goods are real complicated to knit.  They have real intricate patterns that have specific designs and fit a specific need," says Menzies.  "They (China) will make them, but they want to sell a truckload at a time.

   We are making one specifically for plantarfactis that supports the arch," says Menzies. "It is difficult to knit and not something you are going to make truckloads of."

   As domestic manufacturers strive to maintain a competitive edge and come up with new products that can't be reproduced by foreign manufacturers, Huitt says people have begun to ask for American-made products.

   "For the purchasers of socks, they want to know that not only are they getting great quality, but the manufacturer acts responsibly, both to their employees and their environment," explains Huitt."  Every part of the process should be top-notch, from the way we pay and treat our employees to the yarns and chemical we put into our products, and finally, tot he way our company respects the community and the environment in which we operate.  We don't take shortcuts that someone will be stuck paying the cost for later."

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