Jan. 8, 2004, 10:46PM


Era ends as Levi's closes Texas plants, last in U.S.
Associated Press


SAN ANTONIO — Levi Strauss & Co., the California Gold Rush outfitter
whose trademark blue jeans have been an American clothing staple for
generations, on Thursday closed its last two sewing plants in the United
States.

The financially troubled company has been steadily shifting production to
overseas contractors for several years to cut costs and invigorate
drooping sales in the ultracompetitive apparel market.

About 800 workers at the 26-year-old San Antonio plants have lost their
jobs in the move, which was announced in September. Jeff Beckman, a Levi
Strauss spokesman, said the 150-year-old company was making a delayed but
ultimately unavoidable business decision.

"We tried to do our best to maintain manufacturing in the United States,
but we have to be competitive to survive as a company," he said.

Sewing in San Antonio finished up around Thanksgiving, and last month it
ceased the laundering work done to give jeans their various finishes.

More than 4 million pairs of jeans were once made here each year by
workers earning, on average, $10 to $12 per hour.

This spring, San Francisco-based Levi's will complete the shift to
contract production by shuttering its three remaining company-owned
plants in Canada.

Privately held Levi Strauss has weathered seven years of declining sales
after its revenue peak of $7.1 billion in 1996.

In 2002, the company reported sales of $4.1 billion, and Beckman said the
yet-to-be-released number for 2003 would be 2 percent to 3 percent lower
than that.

The company has seen its global work force shrink from more than 37,000
in 1996 to about 12,000 last month, said spokeswoman Kari Otto Seymore.

Along with its headquarters staff, Levi's will continue to base its
design and sales employees in the United States.

Walter Loeb, an analyst in New York, says the profitability of moving
production is worth more than a symbolic presence in the United States,
where Levi's had made jeans since the 1870s.

"Investors are not very sentimental these days," he said.


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"Userb3" <userb3removethis@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:Xns946B7CE89329Fvoteprochoice@207.14.113.17.. .
That really really sucks - bigtime!

"A Adams" <yawn@antispam.com> wrote in message news:<YWCLb.12921$1F4.561@fe2.texas.rr.com>...
A sad day. It's as if Scotland no longer makes scotch.
Wantonsong

So does this this include Levi's Original Spin Program too? I am not
anywhere close to the locations that offer(ed) this so I never had the
inclination to use it.

I've bought a few items that are now made outside the US and after
seeing the poor quality in both fabric and workmanship I believe Levi's
will soon be nothing more than a fond memory.

RIP Levi's

Kish

Kish216@webtv.net (Kish216) wrote in message news:<27272-3FFF9229-126@storefull-2212.public.lawson.webtv.net>...
The Original Spin program has been closed as they no longer do any
manufacturing---in the US or overseas. That the company no longer
manufactures anything is the key point---much more important than
whether the factory is in the Us or elsewhere.

I've found the quality of the contract stuff to be good---you have to
compare like with like---but I think a decline in quality is
inevitable. Quality is not a selling point for fashion merchandise,
as fashionable items are expected to last only a season or two.

Wantonsong

On 10 Jan 2004 09:59:52 -0800, wantonsong wrote:

They're not the only one... I'm typing away on my Microsoft keyboard
(made by a subcontractor) and my Microsoft mouse (made by a
subcontractor). Not to forget that the Microsoft Windows load disk was
duplicated by a subcontractor.

And how did I get to the store for this stuff? A Toyota... and, you
guessed, made by a joint venture company.

Depends.

Saw "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" this AM while flipping
channels.... maybe it should be called "Fashionable Eye for the
Typical Guy Who Wears Stuff Until It Wears Out." <grin/duck>

I keep most of my clothing for years, decades even. Even though I don't
have the first pair of Levi's I ever bought, I did keep the back pockets
as a momento (circa 1974). I'd never buy anything just to wear for a
season or two. Guess I'm in the minority when it comes to fashion.
Kish

I guess I misunderstood what actually happened. I thought that the only
thing Levi's changed was that they paid people in other countries to
manufacture their clothing. Is the name the only thing now attached to
the clothing line? Did they sell the Levi's name? Do they still design
the clothing that's being made?
TIA
Kish

On Sat, 10 Jan 2004 14:47:13 -0500 (EST), Kish216 wrote:

Levi Strauss is now 100% contract manufacturing.

I doubt Levi Strauss and Company would sell the name as it's owned by
the heirs of the founder. FWIW, there are 167 descendants that own
part of the company (it's spread out enough they have to file with the
SEC).

They do the design and marketing (the creative work) in-house. The 3D
stuff is all outsourced.

Kish216@webtv.net (Kish216) wrote in message news:<29284-400056C1-66@storefull-2214.public.lawson.webtv.net>...
A few years ago Levi Strauss was the largest apparel manufacturer in
the world. The jeans they sold in N. America were manufacturered in
plants that Levi Strauss owned and operated in the US and Canada.
Jeans sold in Europe were made in company owned facilities in Europe,
etc. When the Canadian plants close in the Spring all Levi's will be
made by other companies contracted by Levi Strauss to manufacture
their clothing. Those subcontractors also make jeans for Levis
Strauss' competitors----the Gap, Sears, et al. Levi Strauss will
continue to design and market jeans, but may also hire outside
designers.

One of the primary reasons that Levi Strauss gave for moving to
subcontractors---and the subcontractors can be US companies---is that
the time it took to design and manufacture a new pair of jeans was 18
months, and that going to subcontractors would reduce that time to 6
months, allowing the company to better respond to changing fashion
trends. In the old days, design changes were few and far between, and
the major selling point for Levis was that they were of the highest
quality and durability---i.e., that they were the world's greatest
workwear. Recent consumer surveys show that Levi's have maintained
their image as tough, and reliable, but have also come to be seen as
unfashionable, and uncomfortable (too heavy and stiff). The same
surveys have shown that consumers don't care where their clothes are
made, or by whom they are made, and that they aren't willing to pay
much of a premium for higher quality, but that they are willing to pay
a premium for fashionableness, and trendiness.

Just ask anyone who has paid over $100 for a pair of jeans. The
answer is that they fit better, they look better, and they are
"cooler" than other jeans.
No one says it is because they are better made.

Wantonsong