This commentary appeared in the print edition of the Jan. 6, 2020, Journal of Commerce Annual Review and Outlook.
As we exit 2019 and prepare to enter 2020, we at SanMar continue to be faced with how we’ll manage uncertainty and disruptions. Tariffs and global trade will continue to create challenges. Uncertainty in trans-Pacific service creates added challenges. Toss in the impact of IMO 2020, carrier capacity, and consistency, and we have the recipe for a very challenging 2020.
As the nation’s largest supplier of wholesale apparel that is destined to carry a logo or imprint, clearly SanMar and our customers have been impacted by the uncertainty around tariffs. In 2019, we made several sourcing decisions that led to shifts in our supply chain — shifts that included different port pairs, different transit times, and more overall complexity regarding transit management.
At SanMar we have a tagline that “Business is Personal,” and having a trusted relationship with key providers across our supply chain has made the uncertainty and challenges less difficult. An example is that in 2019, over 20 percent of our volume was sourced from China. In 2020, less than 10 percent will be sourced out of China. The locations of our factories may have changed, and the port pairings may have changed, but wherever possible we continue to work with our key supply chain partners to smooth the impact for both them and SanMar. I believe our strategy to foster meaningful and transparent relationships that makes business personal will allow for us and our suppliers to be successful in 2020 and beyond.