WASHINGTON — March 27, 2025 — At the 21st Annual Meeting of the National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO), Chairman Charles Heilig presented an overview of the state of the U.S. textile industry. His speech highlighted the significant U.S. Textile Industry Challenges and Achievements over the past year.
Heilig emphasized that “our industry’s resilience and innovation is unparalleled and strong, despite economic and trade headwinds that have impacted our sector and our customers.” This resilience is crucial as the U.S. textile industry navigates numerous challenges.
He elaborated on the astonishing breadth of difficulties confronting the industry, including economic downturns, predatory trade practices like forced labor in supply chains, and poorly designed trade policies. “The breadth of challenges we face every day is astonishing — economic downturns, predatory trade practices, such as the use of forced labor in supply chains,” Heilig stated, underscoring the ongoing issues of inadequate customs enforcement against trade fraud and post-pandemic inventory struggles.
Despite these hurdles, Heilig noted, “Despite the economic downturn and unfair trade practices impacting the industry in 2024, our metrics remained stable or registered only slight declines.” This highlights the U.S. textile industry’s ability to adapt and survive even in the face of significant adversities.
Heilig also serves as president of Parkdale Mills, an American yarn and cotton consumer products manufacturer located in Gastonia, N.C. The NCTO annual meeting took place from March 24-27 at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C., bringing together key stakeholders in the U.S. textile industry.
In 2024, U.S. employment in the textile supply chain stood at 471,046, with the value of shipments for U.S. textiles and apparel reaching $63.9 billion. Furthermore, U.S. exports of fiber, textiles, and apparel amounted to $28.0 billion, and capital expenditures for textiles and apparel production totaled $2.98 billion in 2022, the most recent year with available data.
The insights shared by Heilig at the NCTO annual meeting underscore the ongoing U.S. textile industry challenges and achievements that shape its future.
