Month: November 2023

FASH455 Exclusive Interview with Jennifer Pisula, Fabric Sourcing Manager at QVC, about Why Fabric Sourcing Matters

About Jennifer Pisula

Jennifer Pisula is a Fabric Sourcing Manager at QVC. Jennifer is also a member of the Cotton Board, appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.

Jennifer has over ten years of experience in the corporate retail industry, where she first started her career as a Buyer at Qurate for QVC, buying for brands such as Isaac Mizrahi, Liz Claiborne, and C. Wonder. Given her love for Product Development and Production, Jennifer shifted her career to Sourcing at QVC where she traveled to China, Hong Kong, and Vietnam for factory and mill visits. Jennifer left QVC to be the Sourcing lead for URBN’s Anthropologie Plus line and the lead for Free People Movement Pre-Production and Production. In 2020, Jennifer returned to Qurate to lead the Fabric Sourcing team for QVC, where she manages sourcing & R&D for over 20 brands, working on both celebrity and core private label brands. Jennifer also works part-time as an Adjunct Professor at Immaculata University, where she teaches Textiles and Fashion Portfolio Development. In addition to her professional positions,

Jennifer Pisula graduated from the Textiles, Fashion Merchandising and Design M.S. program from the University of Rhode Island & earned a B.S. in Fashion Merchandising from Mercyhurst University.

The interview was conducted by Leah Marsh, a graduate student in the Department of Fashion and Apparel Studies at the University of Delaware. Leah’s research focused on​​ exploring EU retailers’ sourcing strategies for clothing made from recycled textile materials and fashion companies’ supply chain and sourcing strategies.

The interview is part of the 2023 Cotton in the Curriculum program, supported by Cotton Incorporated, to develop open educational resources (OER) for global apparel sourcing classes.

Understand the Evolving Production and Trade Patterns of Textiles and Apparel “Made in Asia”: Discussion Questions from Students in FASH455

Students in FASH455 have proposed the following discussion questions based on the videos about the state of textile and apparel in Asia. Everyone is welcome to join the online discussion. For FASH455 students, please address at least two questions and mention the question number (#) in your reply.

#1 We have seen all the improvements and “upgrading” Vietnam has made toward the fashion industry. What can the garment industry in other countries take away from Vietnam’s experiences?

#2 Is Asia’s highly integrated apparel supply chain unique to the region? Can the Western Hemisphere “copy” Asia’s model?

#3 How can Asia’s textile and apparel industry balance the growing demand for sustainability and the need to remain cost-competitive? What innovative strategies can be adopted to achieve this balance?

#4 As Asian textiles and apparel factories continue to improve their efficiency and expand product offers, will it be beneficial for the US to reach a trade agreement with Asian countries? Or do you believe such an agreement might contradict the goals we try to achieve from CAFTA-DR?

#5 Will Vietnam eventually become the next China, or could its labor shortages be a significant barrier preventing its textile and apparel industry from advancing to the next level?

#6 Should textile and garment factories in Asia make more efforts to appeal to the younger generation (e.g., Gen Z)? Or is automation the solution?

#7 To what extent do you think Asian apparel exporting countries (e.g., Bangladesh, Vietnam and Cambodia) will reduce their dependence on textile raw materials supply from China due to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)? Or, instead, do you think Asian apparel-exporting countries other than China benefit from UFLPA?

#8 The video shows that Asian countries have begun to invest heavily in new production capacities for textile recycling. Do you believe the region will continue to dominate textile and apparel production in the era of fashion circularity? Or will the emergence of textile recycling shift the world textile and apparel trade patterns in the long run?

FASH455 Exclusive Interview with Beth Hughes, Vice President of the American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA), about US apparel sourcing from Central America

About Beth Hughes

Beth Hughes serves as the Vice President of the American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA), responsible for supporting the association’s efforts on international trade and customs issues. Beth oversees AAFA’s Trade Policy Committee, as well as AAFA’s Customs Group. Beth is also the spokesperson of the Coalition for Economic Partnership in the Americas (CEPA), a group of prominent American companies, and manufacturers committed to advancing regional trade and employment opportunities in the Western Hemisphere.

Before joining AAFA, Beth served for six years as senior director of international affairs at the International Dairy Foods Association. Beth earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science at George Washington University and received a Master of Arts in international affairs from Florida State University.

The interview was conducted by Leah Marsh, a graduate student in the Department of Fashion and Apparel Studies at the University of Delaware. Leah’s research focused on​​ exploring EU retailers’ sourcing strategies for clothing made from recycled textile materials and fashion companies’ supply chain and sourcing strategies.

The interview is part of the 2023 Cotton in the Curriculum program, supported by Cotton Incorporated, to develop open educational resources (OER) for global apparel sourcing classes.