Since the start of Donald Trump's presidency, famous brand names such as Uniqlo, Levi's, Crocs, Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger have moved their entire manufacturing base out of China.
Politics is not the only factor " rising labor costs and an increasing reluctance in China to produce low-cost goods were prompting the sourcing caravan to move on even before the trade war began. But there is no doubt Trump sped up their departure.
"There is a real sense of panic," says Sean Coxall, the president of solutions at Hong Kong-based supply chain manager Li & Fung.
"We have been working with key customers on a backup plan since Trump came into office, and any company that did not do this in advance is pretty stupid in my opinion. Trump has done most of what he said he would, so why wouldn't he follow through here?"
The more entrenched the trade conflict with China becomes, the more appealing it is for companies to divert supply chains, despite the risk involved, and move " although very few of them are eyeing up the US as a final destination, which is Trump's apparent motive.
On October 1, Trump fired another shot at the heart of Chinese manufacturing when he increased existing tariffs on $250 billion worth of Chinese goods from 25% to 30%. An additional $300 billion worth of Chinese imports were also taxed at a 15% " and much of the focus was on apparel.
"All the companies I work with are anxious and nervous, but one thing nobody is doing is suggesting we open factories in the US," says Matt Priest, the president of the Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America.
"There is a lot of concern, though, as the supply chain cannot shift as quickly as political decisions come down, and while our members have been moving out of China for a long time, about 70% of their products are still made there."
What about Chinese-designed brands that also have buyers in the US market? Even if America is not their focus, do they also need to move their manufacturing offshore to retain their US clients?
"China could surpass the US as the world's biggest fashion market in 2020, according to most data we have seen, so certain Chinese brands will not care what is going on in the US, as it is no longer the center of the entire industry," says Weyan Lui, of intelligence firm L2.
"But there is no doubt that any Chinese brands with interests in the US will be hit by this and concerned about what a heavy hike in price will do to their US sales."
For any fashion brands concerned about tariffs the only option is to move their manufacturing abroad, and a number of other Asian countries have dangled carrots before their noses.
Vietnam has long been the logical first choice " particularly when it comes to footwear. Workers are skilled, and while wages are relatively high for the region (at $216 a month), they are less than half that of China.
Infrastructure is good and, unlike in some countries in the region, electricity remains reasonably cheap thanks to government subsidies.
"Vietnam is excellent in terms of high-value goods and is definitely a market that would benefit from a trade war between the US and China," says Coxall.
"I would say at the moment that Bangladesh has the advantage in terms of apparel and Vietnam has the advantage in footwear."
Bangladesh is still working on smoothing out the difficulties that previously beset its manufacturing industry.
The Rana Plaza tragedy in particular " when a garment factory collapsed in the country's capital, Dhaka, in 2013, killing 1,134 people " has been difficult for brands and customers to forget, even though safety standards have improved significantly since then.
And then there is Cambodia, where apparel manufacturing accounts for 80% of national export earnings and employs more people than any other industry.
These include allowing 100% foreign equity ownership and an exemption from import duty on machinery and equipment. Cambodia also shares ports with Vietnam, which helps with transport and the import of raw materials from China.
There is also Indonesia. Jakarta is rolling out an ambitious plan to digitalize its clothing and textile industry " a key policy devised to meet the government's goal of turning Indonesia into one of the world's top five textile and apparel producers by 2030.
All these countries offer a lot " but it is important to note that there will be no easy successor to China's manufacturing reign, and that brands will need to accept that the future holds plenty of cross-border sourcing.
As the Chinese fashion industry matures and migrates from "Made in China" to "Designed in China," this is a shift that would have occurred in time anyway. Trump has merely sped up the process.
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