ABSTRACT
In every region of the world and in every industry, proximity to market has always played a crucial role (Gereffi, 1999). However, geography’s important role in fashion differs from the reasons of most other industries. In apparel manufacturing, the quota system, or the Multi Fiber Agreement (MFA), dictated production location decisions. The MFA provided a preferential trade framework under which developed countries imposed import quotas on apparel goods from developing countries. This massive international accord was championed by the American textile sector and negotiated by the United States, with the support of Canada and the main country members of what was then the Euro Zone-the precursor to the European Union (EU).
