Major clothing and shoe companies are moving production to countries closer to their US and European stores and away from manufacturing hubs in Asia like China or Vietnam. This is because of the massive shipping logjam that is driving up costs and forcing companies to rethink their globe-spanning supply chains. Spanish fashion retailer Mango has accelerated the process of increasing local production in countries such as Turkey, Morocco and Portugal. In 2019, the company largely sourced its products from China and Vietnam. Similarly, US shoe retailer Steve Madden has pulled back production in Vietnam and shifted 50 per cent of its footwear production to Brazil and Mexico from China. Clogs maker Crocs is moving production to countries including Indonesia and Bosnia.

Bulgaria, Ukraine, Romania, the Czech Republic, Morocco and Turkey are some of the countries drawing new interest from clothing and shoe producers. In Turkey, apparel exports are at an all-time high, driven by a spike in orders from the European Union. Guatemala’s clothing exports are up 34.2 per cent from 2020 and 8.8 per cent higher than in 2019.

However, China continues to produce a large share of apparels for US and European clothing chains. Many companies are still heavily reliant on Vietnam.