The Los Angeles-based company makes clothing for the U.S. military, labor unions, and hundreds of companies from gyms and yoga studios to sporting goods retailers and private label companies.
When Sion Shamsian and his two brothers launched a fabric manufacturing business in Los Angeles in 1993, they could not envision that their company, Expert Brand, would become one of the largest Made in USA producers of performance apparel.
You may not have heard of Expert Brand, because during most of its 31-year existence, the company was a private label, selling only wholesale items to other companies in the performance garment space.
Through aggressive research and development, Expert Brand has delivered ground-breaking, eco-friendly fabrics that are the cornerstone to the many T-shirts, tank-tops, running shorts, hoodies and other apparel being manufactured at its factories in the industrial enclave of Vernon, Calif., near downtown Los Angeles.
Currently, the company offers 16 types of performance fabrics and holds eight registered patents on fabrics that include Siro, TriTech, American MoCA, AirStretch and the top-selling OxyMesh. The apparel features permanent moisture wicking technologies, antimicrobial finished garments and clothing that uses other odor-free fabrics.
If you have purchased performance clothing from a major American brand or are a member of our nation’s vast running community, you probably have been outfitted by a product manufactured by Expert Brand.
“We do mostly performance items and we sell to a lot of running companies, including two of the largest in the U.S.,” said Shamsian, Expert Brand founder and president. “We sell to over 400 running events that buy our products. We are also one of the largest suppliers to the Armed Forces in the country. They buy what are called training shirts.
“We are a subcontractor for other companies that buy our Made in USA items and put designs and logos and their label on them before reselling. So, people may not know it is an Expert Brand product, but they like our fabrics and styles.
“We did a lot of R&D with some major fiber and yarn producers in the U.S. that required us to use micro-fiber polyesters to make a protective shirt, or a moisture wicking shirt or odor-control shirts. Because of supply chain issues, in 1998 we decided to start manufacturing the garments as well as the fabric.”
Expert Brand has avoided supply chain issues because its entire manufacturing process, from fabric construction to finished product, takes place all within a 20-mile radius in the Los Angeles area.
After a modestly successful run as a performance fabric maker in the early 1990s, Expert Brand began manufacturing its own garments in 1998. This expansion began with three employees, two apparel styles and production of less than 100,000 garments annually. Today, approximately 85 employees produce more than 200 apparel styles, with millions of items manufactured each year.
Expert Brand now supplies more than 800 companies including promotional products distributors, apparel decorators, gyms, marathons, sporting goods retailers, yoga studios, the U.S. military, labor unions, and many more.
“We are proud of the introduction of eco-friendly type products that are Made in the USA because we do see an expansion of products with a low CO2 impact and that are also more sustainable,” Shamsian said. “We’ve created a line of 100% recycled polyester, we make 100% organic cotton T-shirts, and we are introducing new fabrics all the time. We think they are important because of climate issues that are more important to a younger generation.
“What is even more important to us is that these products are Made in the USA. You see other products coming from overseas that call themselves eco-friendly, but we believe that a Made in USA eco-friendly product is more trustworthy than a lot of these other fabrics. There is no way to track the supplier of these items.”
Making more than 85% of its products entirely in the U.S. has allowed Expert Brand to tackle the logistics problems that come with importing foreign made garments.
“For us, Made in the USA is not just feeling patriotic. I think Made in USA contributes to both the U.S. economy and the world economy,” Shamsian said. “It creates more domestic jobs in a lot of different industries. It is not just the cutting and sewing here, it is the supply chain from technology staff to marketing from the suppliers. You’ve created an industry, and you are creating a lot of jobs.
“Also, the R&D being done here brings innovation to a new product and actually helps in boosting investment opportunities. We also know the greatest benefit of Made in the USA is the ability to respond quicker to the continuing demand. Right now, the fashion industry moves so fast, but we can be smart.
“USA manufacturers are more efficient than a lot of other places. We keep certain yarns and fabrics in stock so if somebody needs 10, 20 or 30 thousand items we can turn it around in 30 days, where overseas products may take four or five months.”
Expert Brand is a versatile, vertical manufacturer, but the Made in USA tag does come at a small price. While still quite affordable with T-shirts selling at retail for anywhere from $9 to $18, Shamsian knows he can’t compete with fast fashion brands like Temu and Shein.
“Our research shows that 70% of Americans are willing to pay more for a high-quality, made in USA item,” he said, “They are willing to pay 15% to 20% more but beyond that they won’t do it. If you put out a better-quality product, which we do, it helps us.
“People are not happy with this fast fashion where you can go to these major discounters and buy T-shirts for $4, $5, and $7, wash it two or three times then throw it away. People are willing to pay more if it lasts a lot longer than that.
“Since the pandemic, we are seeing a surge in Made in USA, especially with retailers. A retailer might have to make a huge order and wait six months to get product from overseas and by the time they get it, fashion may have changed a little bit so they will be stuck with obsolete products. Here they can order a smaller number of units, and they can repeat it every month or couple of months. They are making a better investment by buying made in USA and we think buyers are beginning to understand this.”
That surge in attraction to American-made products is not lost on Shamsian. That is why about 18 months ago, Expert Brand decided to offer a retail line of performance clothing so that consumers can buy individual pieces of clothing and be sure of its American-made origins.
“We are building that direct-to-consumer market as well and we’ve had a good response,” Shamsian said. “The direct-to-consumer business is growing, and you just can’t ignore it because after all we do have a plan that we like to promote it. We just don’t want to be only a private label company.
“A lot of people ask their vendors to use our product as their choice because the product is a superior product. The proof is in the pudding. Customers are asking for Made in the USA. A lot of customers want manufacturing in the U.S., they want that quality, and they want to see a product that lasts longer. We make that product.”
Expert Brand e-commerce items are available on its retail website. For the complete company website, including wholesale items, visit www.expertbrand.com.