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PROJECT PROFILE: Garment Industry Development Corporation (GIDC, 2000 award)
Modeling NYC creations at an MDCP-supported show in Paris.
NYC Designs Sell in Western Europe
New York City-based fashion designers got help from ITA's U.S. Export Assistance Center in Manhattan as well as its Commercial Service posts in Europe to show their apparel at industry events in Paris and other European fashion centers. The three-year project helped several U.S. firms export $26 million in apparel.
MDCP Award/GIDC Match: $374,907/$797,402
Markets Targeted: Brazil, France, Germany, Korea, Mexico, Netherlands, United Kingdom
U.S. Industry Promoted: Apparel
Period: 2000-2003
Key ITA Collaborators:
- Anastasia Xenias, New York, New York USEAC
- Larry Brill, Industry & Analysis, Office of Textiles and Apparel
Project Description:
- Create virtual internet showroom.
- Help foreign buyers visiting NYC.
- Prepare exporters for missions and fashion shows.
- Use market-specific catalogs, foreign advertising and PR campaigns.
Exports generated: $26,200,000
Exports per dollar of award: $70
ITA's partner in this MDCP project was the Garment Industry Development Corporation (GIDC), a non profit organization established in 1984 to strengthen and support local apparel manufacturing in New York. GIDC was supported by City of New York, the Garment Workers’ Union (UNITE), and the New York Skirt & Sportswear Association to strengthen New York City’s apparel industry.
Commercial Service Paris Provides Fashion Show Venue
GIDC had trouble finding a suitable venue to display fashion creations by NYC designers during a planned trade mission to Paris. ITA's Commercial Service staff posted at the U.S. Embassy offered the Hotel Tallyrand, a distinguished former residence in downtown Paris built in 1769 and owned by the U.S. government since 1950.
The fashion showcase event, pictured above, succeeded in grabbing the attention of buyers from scores of Western European apparel retailers. These buyers were in Paris already for other fashion events. Given the choice of events for these buyers, the prestigious Hotel Tallyrand venue was key to drawing a crowd.
Suitcase Logistics
Prior to the GIDC-ITA partnership under the MDCP award, it was harder for foreign buyers to get what they wanted from NYC apparel manufacturers. In one example, while in NYC, a buyer from one of Brazil's largest department store chains found an entire apparel collection that he was willing to buy on the spot. When the buyer inquired about shipping arrangements, the NYC business owner had no idea how to send their product abroad. This firm was lucky that the Brazilian buyer was highly motivated. He went out and bought several pieces of luggage, filled them with the purchased apparel, and checked them on his flight back to Brazil.
GIDC dubbed the project "New York Fashion International" (NYFI). A major part of NYFI was to coordinate with ITA to educate American businesses about the export process. NYC firms now know much more about logistics. Expecting foreign customers to come to New York, purchase apparel, and escort it back as accompanied luggage is a thing of the past.
One of the firms that took advantage of overseas trade events conducted by GIDC under the MDCP project early on was Jump Apparel Group. At the time, the firm was a small special-occasion dress manufacturer in New York. See this 2017 video about how this company, now called Jump Design Group, is doing.
- How to Apply for MDCP Funding
- Contact your local Export Assistance Center
- Jump Design Group Video
- Highlight: Exports Help NYC Apparel Firm Post Exponential Growth
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