American Apparel & Footwear Association,update

SUBSCRIBE | ABOUT | EVENTS | ADVERTISE | JOIN April 28, 2026   Today, AAFA testified on the Section 301 investigation on forced labor. More on this, tariff refunds underway, and brand protection developments with today’s edition. U.S. Apparel Supply Chains Pressured as Shipping Costs Surge April 28: ... American Apparel & Footwear Association Executive Vice President, Nate Herman, told Just Style the organizations members are seeing “mounting cost pressures across global supply chains as increased shipping costs impact trade lanes beyond the Middle East and are layered on top of peak season surcharges and general rate increases.” (Source: Just Style) Fashion is Lurching Toward a Compliance Reckoning April 27: ... The risk of failing to do so is not just inefficiency. Chelsea Murtha, senior director of sustainability at the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA), warns that fragmented, nationally divergent implementation is already turning sustainability regulation into an administrative burden. France’s Ecoscore mechanism — a product-level environmental rating system — requires a different data set than what is proposed under the EU’s product environmental footprint methodology. Similar divergences are emerging across member states’ EPR schemes. (Source: Vogue Business) Turning Heat Stress Guidance into Practical Industry Action April 22: Heat stress is not a new issue, but it’s accelerating at a pace that the apparel and footwear industry must take further action upon. It is influencing how factories operate, how companies think about worker well-being, and how supply chains prepare for operational disruption. For an industry that produces globally and sells globally, heat stress has implications across sourcing, production, and business continuity. That is why the American Apparel & Footwear Association has been working with industry stakeholders to develop the AAFA Guide to Protecting Workers from Heat Stress, focusing on what it takes to move from awareness to practical implementation. (Source: Cascale) The Iran War Could Drive Up Costs for Petroleum-Derived Products like Clothes and Crayons April 24: ... By the end of April, U.S. shoe and clothing manufacturers need to start signing contracts with suppliers, mostly outside the U.S., for orders of polyester staple fiber and polyester filament yarn to get their designs on retail shelves and online for the holiday shopping season, according to Nate Herman, executive vice president of the American Apparel & Footwear Association. (Source: Associated Press) LISTEN: Taxes and Tariffs April 24: Podcast on taxes and tariffs and the connection to the apparel and footwear industry including an interview with American Apparel & Footwear Association president and CEO, Steve Lamar. (Source: Articles of Interest) Tariff Refunds Portal Now Live as Importers Seek Initial $130 Billion Tranche April 22: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has gone live with its IEEPA Refund page, providing a mechanism for importers to get back the money paid for tariffs that have been ruled unconstitutional. While estimates vary as to the total amount paid, it could reach as high as $160 billion or more, according to Ashley Craig, an attorney and Partner and Co-Chair of the Trade Group at Venable LLP. (Source: Retail Touchpoints) World IP Day 2026 Spotlights IP Issues in Sports April 27: The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) established World IP Day to commemorate April 26, 1970, the date the WIPO Convention officially took effect. Each year, the occasion serves as a global reminder of the role that intellectual property plays in encouraging innovation and creativity. This year, the World IP Day theme is “IP and Sports Ready, Set, Innovate,” recognizing the increasingly complex relationship between intellectual property rights and the multibillion-dollar global sports industry. (Source: IPWatchdog) WATCH: Sen. Hawley’s Warning Shakes AI War Debate April 25: In a tense Senate Judiciary hearing titled 'Stealth Stealing: China’s Ongoing Theft of U.S. Innovation,' Josh Hawley and Helen Toner clashed over a question that could define the future of America: Can the U.S. beat China in AI without losing its own identity? (Source: The Economic Times) Meta is Sued Over Scam Ads on Facebook and Instagram April 21: In its complaint, CFA points to ads found in Meta’s ads library that CFA claims are types of well-known scams, including several that appear to target people by their birth year and tout $1,400 checks, as well as others that advertise free government iPhones. (Source: WIRED) WRAP Industry Chat: In this Industry Chat, hear from Avedis Seferian, President and CEO of Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production (WRAP) - AAFA’s Corporate Social Responsibility Partner – and Nate Herman, AAFA’s Executive Vice President. They introduce their latest industry guidance offing insight that sourcing professionals should consider when conducting business in a conflict zone. They also offer a reminder rundown of other WRAP/AAFA guidance related to responsible sourcing during tariffs, excessive working hours, how to prevent forced labor in the supply chain, and a guidance on social responsibility for non-CSR personnel. Watch now.   This follows the new AAFA Guide to Protecting Workers from Heat Stress that was release earlier this month. The guidance is intended to provide practical and actionable recommendations that can be operationalized in supply chains to implement policies and procedures to both mitigate and prevent excessive heat days and to protect workers when excessive heat days do occur. For more on how to use this new open-industry resource, AAFA will host a briefing for all industry stakeholders on May 19 at 10:00 AM ET. Today's testimony on Section 301 investigations: Earlier today, Nate Herman testified in front of the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) on the Section 301 investigation on forced labor as a representative of the Forced Labor Working Group (FLWG), composed of 17 industry groups representing thousands of companies across diverse industries.   In his testimony, he expressed that while the FLWG shares the Administration's commitment to eradicating forced labor from global supply chains, imposing any tariffs under Section 301 is likely to result in increased costs and disruption to the very supply chains that the FLWG and its members have worked to make more transparent and accountable.    View the testimony as prepared for delivery and read AAFA's submitted comments on the Section 301 investigation on forced labor and excess capacity. Brand protection in focus: Following World IP Day, AAFA led a multi-association letter to U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) John A. Squires, underscoring the importance of strong intellectual property protections. Just yesterday, AAFA urged passage of H.R. 4930, a key anti-counterfeiting customs enforcement measure. The bill has since passed the House, and AAFA is now calling on the Senate to swiftly take up the legislation so it can be signed into law by President Trump.   This week, AAFA's Senior Director of Brand Protection, Jennifer Hanks, is in Orlando for the International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition Annual Conference (IACC) 2026 (April 28 to 30) leading meetings with Walmart, Meta, Shopee, Alibaba, Mercado Libre, and TikTok/TikTok SHOP. AAFA will also host the next Brand Protection Council (BPC) call on May 12 with guest speaker Conrad Wong (IP Attache covering Guangzhou and Southern China) and Qian (Kelly) Sheng (Program Specialist, The Office of Policy and International Affairs) from the USPTO's China Team. For questions, please reach out to Jennifer Hanks. Last week’s 2026 American Image Awards celebrated the leaders, innovators, and changemakers shaping the future of apparel and footwear. A special thank you to the Council of Fashion Designers of America Foundation for ten years of valued partnership in making this event possible. Look back with coverage from Vogue, the Daily Front Row, Women's Wear Daily, and more with #AmericanImageAwards.   Tariff refunds, AGOA Federal Register Notice, and supply chain updates: Members continue to file via U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)’s first phase of the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) tool in the Automated Commercial Environment Secure Data Portal (ACE Portal). To keep up with how the process continues to move, join AAFA's next Member-Only Call on Tariffs on May 18. Thank you to Elise Shibles from Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A. for answering questions on CAPE during our latest call yesterday.    Today the USTR released the Federal Register Notice for Request for Comments on the Modernization of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). AAFA will be submitting comments by May 15. For further updates and information, we invite members to participate in the next TCC meeting in Washington on May 5, followed by a Lobby Day on Capitol Hill on May 6. Questions can be directed to Beth Hughes.    To stay informed with transportation updates, members can join monthly Shipping Roundtables (register for the next call on May 20 at noon ET) and talk to Membership about representation on AAFA’s Transportation Team, led by Audrey Clark. Thank you to our recent Shipping Roundtable guest speaker, Mark P. Mills, Executive Director of the National Center for Energy Analytics, who shared insights on energy markets and capacity trends. Member Welcome: Knix Knix designs game-changing intimates, swimwear, and activewear that empower people to feel comfortable in their own skin. At Knix, we believe that everyone should be able to live unapologetically free. Free from judgment. Free from self-doubt. Free to be yourself. April-May   April 29 | Online: Webinar: Prove It or Lose It: Affirming Supply Chain Traceability for Cotton and Beyond May 4 | Online: Webinar: Navigating IEEPA Tariff Refunds: What Apparel Importers Need to Know Now May 5 | Online: Briefing: Fibre Fragmentation with The Microfibre Consortium May 6 | Online: Webinar: Product Safety Starts Upstream: Preventing Compliance Failures at the Source May 18 | Online: AAFA Member-Only Call on Tariffs* May 19 | Online: Implementing the AAFA Heat Guidance May 20 | Online: Monthly Member-Only Shipping Roundtable* May 20 | Online: Webinar: What’s Changing in ESG Compliance: A Guide for 2026 and Beyond   *Member-only content Visit our events calendar for all AAFA webinars, scheduled events, and member/committee calls. Government Contractors Forum September 15 - 16 | Philadelphia, PA Sponsorships are available for the Government Contractors Forum. All other sponsorships for 2026 are sold out. Plan early for 2027 and contact Megan Balkovic to discuss your preferred events and programs for next year. About the American Apparel & Footwear Association The American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) is the national trade association representing apparel, footwear and other sewn products companies, and their suppliers, which compete in the global market. Representing more than 1,100 world famous name brands, AAFA is the trusted public policy and political voice of the apparel and footwear industry, its management and shareholders, its more than 3.6 million U.S. workers, and its contribution of more than $523 billion in annual U.S. retail sales. AAFA drives progress on three key priorities: Brand Protection; Supply Chain & Sourcing; and Trade, Logistics, & Manufacturing. AAFA approaches this work through the lens of purpose-driven leadership in a manner that supports each member’s ability to build and sustain inclusive and diverse cultures, meet and advance ESG goals, and draw upon the latest technology. PRIORITIES | SOLUTIONS | ACCESS | ABOUT | EVENTS

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