Steven Madden, a US shoe company, plans to cut nearly half of its production in China within the next year due to looming tariffs under a second Trump administration. The move is a response to President-elect Donald J. Trump’s promise to impose additional 60% tariffs on goods coming from China.
The company has been building up a factory base outside China for several years but quitting the country proves challenging, with over 70% of its US imports still originating from there. Steven Madden aims to reduce its exposure to Chinese tariffs by moving 25% of its business out of China by next year.
Industry experts warn that higher tariffs will not necessarily prompt companies to relocate production back to the US, but rather to other countries best connected with their Chinese suppliers. “It is hard to move out of China,” said Bert Hofman, a former World Bank country director for China, highlighting the complexities involved in sourcing products from alternative countries.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/08/business/steve-madden-ceo-china.html