Supply Chain Research

Fashion retailer Steve Madden has estimated U.S. duties on Chinese exports could add $30 million to costs over the coming 12 months, equivalent to 16.4% of its pre-tax profits from the past year. CEO Edward Rosenfeld has stated the company’s main response is to “aggressively shift production out of China” as well as trying to renegotiate supplier terms. China, including Hong Kong, accounted for 78.5% of the company’s total U.S. seaborne imports – mostly footwear not currently covered by tariffs. A 13.3% drop in shipments in September vs. a year earlier and a 65.9% rise in rest-of-world i...