The $2.21 Gap That Just Flipped the Apparel Playbook
By: Logan Pierce – SeaPRwire – The old rule is broken. For a 100-unit run of a simple custom garment, made-in-USA now undercuts overseas on total landed cost. Domestic lands at about $17.55 a unit. Overseas lands at about $19.76. That is a 13 percent edge for Los Angeles cut-and-sew in 2026. Tariffs did the math. Founders who still quote the decade-old playbook are already behind. Plucky Reach released the total-cost-of-ownership numbers on August 26 from the Los Angeles Fashion District. The company has spent more than 20 years in the local garment trade. It has helped build over 1,000 brands and contributed to more than $15 million in client revenue. Its own analysis shows domestic production running roughly 13 percent cheaper once Section 301 duties, freight, and rework risk are counted. Abby Perez, founder and CEO, put it plainly. Founders keep saying overseas has to be cheaper because that is what everyone learned a decade ago. The tariffs changed the equation. When...