product globel trade anaylsis
TRANSCRIPT
Allison Brister
1/5/16
MCS 229
Global Trade and Sourcing Analysis
For my mid-priced apparel retail store, I chose to visit Dillard’s. I thought this store
would be perfect with its large variety of clothing. The department store not only had a great
selection of different apparel but also provided a large array of clothing from different countries.
When visiting Dillard’s I carried a pen and paper with me and wrote down each item’s
price, description of the product, and where the item was manufactured. I found that the majority
of the items surveyed were made in China. Most of the items I chose were dresses. I found that
the cost of all items, particularly the dresses, were similar. Despite the garments being
manufactured in various countries, the prices of the dresses were similar. I would have expected
that the garments manufactured in China would be less expensive than a garment manufactured
in the U.S. because U.S. wages are a lot higher than China’s wages. Higher wages result in
higher cost of production. Instead, I found that dresses specifically manufactured in the U.S. had
very similar prices to those manufactured in China. I did find though that the majority of clothing
was made in China and other countries besides the U.S. This is because the U.S. has a greater
cost production than most other countries. This is due to the fact that the U.S. has minimum
wage laws that insure that a laborer receives wages greater than those in other countries.
Therefore a U.S. clothing manufactures will have its clothing made in other countries due to the
cheaper cost of production.
I also studied the intricacies of the various garments. Generally, I found that those
manufactured in countries such as Vietnam, India, and Indonesia were of a lesser quality than
those manufactured in China or the U.S. These less intricate garments also cost less than the ones
manufactured in the U.S. or China. Of all of the garments manufactured, the U.S. only has a free
trade agreement with Jordan. The two items I surveyed that were manufactured in Jordan are a
red vest and a yellow quilted jacket. Both items had some degree of intricacy particularly the
quilted jacket. They were both of good quality. Because the U.S. has a free trade agreement with
Jordan the store can charge a higher price for the garments as compared to a lesser price charged
for those garments manufactured in Indonesia, India, and Myanmar. Proximity to U.S. markets
also has an effect on pricing. For example, the garments manufactured in China generally had a
higher retail cost than those manufactured elsewhere. This could be due to the fact that China’s
market is so far from the U.S. The cost of getting the goods from China to the U.S. is greater
than getting goods from the other nations to the U.S. due to proximity. China’s imports have
penetrated U.S. markets more than any of the other countries. More than half of the clothing that
I surveyed was made in China.
After performing this sourcing project, I am now more aware of where my clothing
comes from. Also I feel I will be more likely to look at tags in clothing to see where the clothing
is manufactured and compare prices. I now realize how many jobs could be given to U.S.
workers but are now given to workers overseas because the cost of production is less.
Work Cited: Dillard’s department store in Metairie, Louisiana