Clothing Manufacturer for US Brands

As of 19 September 2026: the normal MFN duty for your commodity code, 16.5 per cent on cotton knit tees and hoodies, plus a 10 per cent Section 301 duty that USTR applied to all goods of Bangladesh from 24 July 2026, so roughly 26.5 per cent all-in. The IEEPA reciprocal tariff ended on 20 February 2026, and the cut to 19 per cent announced that month never took effect. The US-cotton rate is a commitment rather than a live rate: the February 2026 trade agreement promised a mechanism, and USTR's July notice directs a tariff-rate quota for Bangladesh when feasible, under which a set volume of Bangladeshi textiles and apparel, tied to Bangladesh's imports of US cotton and textile inputs, would enter free of the 10 per cent. It would not remove MFN duty, and no volume, allocation or paperwork rules have been published yet. We do not price it in, and neither should you until a licensed customs broker confirms it.

Domestic wins on lead time and simplicity; overseas wins on cost and minimums, and the honest recommendation depends on which constraint is binding for you. A US factory can turn an order in weeks rather than months, involves no customs, and lets you visit in a day — genuinely valuable if you are iterating fast or your customer cares about a made-in-USA label. What you pay for that is typically two to three times the unit cost, and minimums that are often higher rather than lower, since fewer domestic factories are set up for small runs. Overseas means roughly three months and a customs process, which we handle DDP. If speed is your constraint and margin is not, use a domestic factory. If you are trying to make the unit economics work at low volume, that is harder to do domestically.

Because an FOB quote stops at the port of loading and ours runs to your door. FOB, free on board, ends the supplier's responsibility once the cartons are loaded on board the ship in Bangladesh. For a US order, everything after that is yours: sea freight, insurance, US port charges, customs brokerage, inland delivery and the duty itself, which as of 27 September 2026 is the MFN rate (16.5 per cent on cotton knit tees and hoodies) plus the 10 per cent Section 301 duty in force since 24 July 2026. On 500 tees at a $6.00 factory price, that duty alone comes to about $795. Those costs arrive later as separate invoices, usually from companies you have never dealt with. Our quotes are DDP, delivered duty paid, with all of it inside one landed price. To compare like with like, ask the other supplier for a DDP price to your address, or convert their FOB figure with our landed cost calculator.

One hundred and fifty pieces per style, per colour, cut and sewn to your pattern. The minimum applies to each colourway, so a tee in three colours needs 450 pieces and two styles in three colours need 900. Our free MOQ calculator totals the pieces across your styles and colours and warns you if the quantity per colourway falls below 150. For US brands the duty sits alongside the quantity decision. The United States has promised a tariff-rate quota under which a set volume of Bangladeshi textiles and apparel, tied to Bangladesh's imports of US cotton and textile inputs, would enter free of the 10 per cent Section 301 duty that has applied since 24 July 2026; it is not yet open, and it would not remove the underlying MFN duty. Until USTR publishes the quota rules, we price the full 10 per cent into every DDP quote, whatever the order size, so the number you approve does not rely on a concession that may not arrive.

Ten days for sampling, forty to fifty days for bulk once the pre-production sample is signed off, then freight. Air freight to the US adds roughly five to seven days door to door and suits launch dates or first orders. Sea freight adds about thirty to forty days depending on whether you are landing on the west or east coast, at a fraction of the cost — sensible for repeat bulk where the date is not tight. We ship DDP, so we handle export, customs entry and duty, and you get a landed price rather than a broker's invoice later. Most brands air-freight the launch order to hit a date, then move to sea once the range is proven. We quote a realistic date, not an optimistic one. From order to your door, plan on about 70 days by air.

Four things by law: fibre content, country of origin, the identity of the maker or a dealer such as the importer or your own business, and care instructions. The FTC's textile rules cover the first three: fibre by generic name and percentage in descending order, the country of origin (Made in Bangladesh), and the manufacturer or a dealer (importer, wholesaler or consenting retailer) as a company name or an FTC-issued RN. The Care Labeling Rule, 16 CFR 423, adds permanent care instructions with a reasonable basis, attached before sale. For children's products under the CPSIA add a permanent tracking label with the manufacturer, importer or private labeler, the location and date of production, and the batch. The Children's Product Certificate is not a label: under 16 CFR 1110 the importer of record issues it, based on tests by a CPSC-accepted laboratory. We sew the labels to your artwork; you supply the RN. Verified 27 September 2026 against the FTC and CPSC guidance under Sources.

Add the man-made fibres together, then compare the total with the cotton. Note 2 to Section XI of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule classifies a blend by the fibre that predominates by weight, and Note 2(B)(c) treats chapters 54 and 55 as a single chapter when another chapter is involved, so polyester, nylon, elastane and viscose count as one man-made group against cotton. Subheading Note 2 carries the same rule to garments. A 60/35/5 cotton, polyester and elastane jersey is 60% cotton against 40% man-made, so a tee in it enters under 6109.10.00 at 26.5% in all, with the 10% Section 301 duty. Change the mix to 48/47/5 and the man-made share is 52%: the same tee moves to 6109.90.10 at 42%. A 50/25/25 polyester, cotton and viscose tri-blend is 75% man-made, so it takes the 42% line too. When a fabric sits near the middle, classify it on the tested composition rather than the nominal one.

For most tops, no; for cotton bottoms, yes. Cotton knit tees (HTS 6109.10.00) and cotton hoodies and sweatshirts (6110.20.20) carry 16.5% whether they are cut for men or for women. Cotton knit joggers and shorts differ: 16.1% as men's (6103.42.10) and 14.9% as women's (6104.62.20), so 26.1% against 24.9% once the 10% Section 301 duty is added, while polyester or nylon bottoms are 38.2% either way (6103.43.15 and 6104.63.20). For unisex styles, Note 9 to chapter 61 treats a front opening that closes left over right as men's and right over left as women's, unless the cut clearly shows otherwise, and a garment that still cannot be identified either way goes under the women's headings. Heading 6109 also excludes garments with a ribbed waistband or drawstring at the hem, so a rib-hemmed tee is entered under 6110, at the same 16.5% for cotton. Tell us how each style is sized and sold, and have your broker confirm the line.