LUBBOCK, Texas (RFD NEWS) — Efforts to bring textile and apparel manufacturing back to the United States will fail if they rely on outdated models, according to textile executive Bob Antoshak, who argues the industry’s return depends on building something fundamentally different from what existed decades ago. Rising labor costs and global competition have permanently closed the door on labor-intensive mills, but they have not eliminated the opportunity for a modern, automated domestic industry.
Antoshak points to early investments in nearshoring and advanced manufacturing as evidence that the sector can re-emerge if it is highly automated, vertically integrated, and closely connected to consumer demand. These projects prioritize speed, flexibility, and control over low wages, enabling producers to respond more quickly to market shifts and supply disruptions.
He cautions that tariffs alone do not create an industrial strategy. Broad import duties raise costs across the supply chain, including machinery and equipment needed for automation, ultimately increasing expenses for domestic producers and consumers without meaningfully rebuilding capacity.
The viable path forward centers on full vertical integration — from fiber or yarn through finished goods — supported by significant capital investment, advanced robotics, digital planning, and real-time market feedback. This approach reduces dependence on fragmented global sourcing and strengthens supply chain resilience.
Antoshak argues the next U.S. textile sector will be smaller in workforce but higher in output, technologically driven, and built around transparent, distinctly American brand narratives rather than nostalgia.
The Cotton-4 are pushing hard for new value chain investments. Still, many U.S. cotton producers face unsustainable losses, and weakened regional textile capacity threatens the survival of the Carolina “dirt-to-shirt” supply chain.
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