As chronicled by the popular blog Fashion Incubator – Rick Woldenberg was quoted recently in the Wall Street Journal as describing February 10th 2009 as National Bankruptcy Day. This is of course due to the enforcement of CPSIA regulations that will place restrictions and unrealistic requirements on small business owners whose products are sold/targeted to the children – in particular those under the age of 12 years of age.
As it sits now, this legislation will effect apparel decorators selling into the childrens market and require certification be completed for each manufacturing batch to ensure conformity – limiting the amount of lead and phalates that can be contained.
This regulation is being fought on many fronts and I urge you to learn about this and get involved. Below are links to conversations that explain in great detail the reach of this act and what it means to our economy and our businesses.
Fashion Incubator has the most detail on this topic: http://www.fashion-incubator.com/category/cpsia/
Here is a recent article that summarized things well from Forbes Magazine: http://www.forbes.com/opinions/2009/01/16/cpsia-safety-toys-oped-cx_wo_0116olson.html
Here is the conversation among apparel decorators at T-shirtforums.com: https://www.t-shirtforums.com/general-t-shirt-selling-discussion/t69913.html
As a bit of good news – this topic has qualified as one that will be brought to light at a national level by change.org – Read more here: Save Small Business from the CPSIA
Thanks for reading.
Tags: childrens apparel, CPSIA, decorated apparel
Great resources Guy! Thanks for the information and additional resources..
If your readers are not familiar with the word Phalates, actually the correct spelling is Phthalate, it is mainly used in plasticizers to increase their flexibility and are chiefly used in polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Phthalates are being phased out of most products because of health reasons.
I would also like to mention that the entire line of Solutions products from Imprintables Warehouse is totally Phthalate free. The Eco film from Imprintables is also totally free of Phthalate.