The Travels of a T-shirt in the Global

Economy
Chapter XII
In 2005 the quotas were lifted for a little bit, and the U.S. was flooded with Chinese apparel. To
put on restrictions once again, in the same year, a quota proposal was taken to the House of
Representatives. It passed by one vote, and lasted from 2006 to 2009. In the trade data for the
2005 through 2008 period most small countries did pretty well, and the biggest losses were in
large countries. As of mid-2008 China had plenty of quota left and quota prices were falling. By
2007, China was purchasing more than twice as much cotton from America as the U.S. textile
industry.
This problem has occurred more than once; in the early seventeenth century cotton clothing was
introduced to England. This caused England's wool market to take a big hit. Parliament tried to
do anything it could to revive the wool market, but cotton ended up winning the hearts of the
public. However, Parliament was able to restrict imports to only plain cotton, but this didn't stop
people from wanting colors, so England figured out how to print and die cotton cloth. This put
more and more woolen workers out of work, so they decided to fight back. The workers action
forced Parliament to make all cotton clothes and furnishings that were imported illegal.
Englanders needed a way of producing large amounts of cotton at a cheap price, so innovators
created ideas about how to manufacture more. They came up with power looms, spinning
jennies, and factories. These inventions launched the Industrial Revolution, which started the
growth of cotton in America. So really, we can thank all of the woolen workers, who attacked
and plundered the streets of London 300 years ago, for everything that we have today.
Chapter XIII
The used clothing businesses give away much of its clothing to other countries. Between 1995
and 2007, the United States exported nearly 9 billion pounds of used clothing and other worn
textile products to the rest of the world. Most of these businesses are locally or family owned.
The surplus clothing industry has customers in more than 100 countries. During most of the past
decade, the U.S. has been the world's largest exporter of used clothing. Used t-shirts that are
exported to other countries are usually sold in markets.
The U.S. textile recycling industry consists of thousands of small family businesses, many now
in their third or fourth generation of family ownership. By 2008, the competitive landscape was
far more intense than it had been just a few years earlier. In 2004, used clothing businesses in
America could buy unsorted truckloads of clothing for about 5 to 7 cents per pound. By the
summer of 2008, this price had approximately doubled from the competition among the
increasing number of buyers. During this same period, the price of new t-shirts from China fell
by half.
The clothes that arrive at the used clothing business are sorted into many different categories:
skirts, men's pants, household materials, jeans, t-shirts, etc. This sorting task requires much more
skill and attention than in earlier days. After the clothes are sorted they are either shipped to
places like Japan, France, or Africa. Some types of clothing are more valuable to certain
consumers than others. A perfect-condition Mickey Mouse t-shirt is worth a lot in Japan.
Africans prefer darker-colored clothes that hide dirt better. Also, old band or "event" t-shirts are
worth much more in Japan. Today, used clothing businesses sort clothing into more than 400
different categories.
Chapter XIV
Since American women buy more clothes than men AND take better care of their clothes than
men. Buying woman's clothes is much cheaper than men's clothes. Even though they live in
Africa, people there have the same fashion sense as we do in America. Blue jeans are high end
items and are often examined more for its fashion features. The more fashionable style, the more
money the business can get for the blue jeans. T-shirts from America are the most popular and
highly prized articles of clothing. The college and professional sports team shirts are popular all
over Africa. Winning team shirts can fetch higher prices.
In the world of used clothing, researchers found consumers seek out "new" clothing that is
wrinkled and musty smelling. A freshly pressed or clean smelling garment cannot possibly have
spent weeks or months in a compressed bale in a warehouse or shipping container; therefore, it is
the more wrinkled and musty clothing that is likely to be "new" from America, while the fresh-
pressed and clean-smelling clothing is more likely to be "old" (that is worn or pre-sorted in
Africa). Ninety percent of the value of a bale of used clothing comes from 10% of the items.
Chapter XV
Not all countries allow imports of used clothing. More than thirty countries ban the imports
through prohibitions or numerous bureaucratic walls. Some of these laws were established to try
to save local textile industries. When North Carolina lost its textile industry it was lost to low
wage workers in China. In comparison, the African textile industry was lost to high wage earners
in America who have so many clothes that it is given away for free. Other industries in Africa
are created by the clothing imports. These include traders, importers, sorters, launderers, and
tailors. All these jobs could add up to more than were destroyed.
There are "formal" and "informal" sectors of African economies. The "formal" sectors were
many times operated under bad governments. Some people think the "informal" sectors should
be more encouraged. The definition of "informal" to some people, are those businesses that do
not look American.
Some people think U.S. clothing donated to charities should be free, but this would remove a lot
of income to people in Africa. Another problem with clothing donations is that some charities are
not equipped to sort, grade and distribute them, so they end up rotting in warehouses. This causes
most disaster/relief organizations to nearly beg people not to send clothing to disaster areas.
Some people think the Africans are humiliated and embarrassed by receiving used clothes, this is
not true. Many people delight in the challenge and reward of their shrewd shopping. There's an
environmental benefit to the recycling as well.