'Made in Iraq' labels headed for USA

BAGHDAD -- U.S. shoppers will soon see "Made in Iraq" on clothing sold in American stores.

Shelmar, a 51-store retail chain based in Memphis, became the first American retailer to place an order with an Iraqi factory last month. About 2,000 tracksuits and boys shirts are expected to be on store shelves by early October, says Mike Longo, president and partner in the privately held company. Shelmar also does business as M Town and has stores in seven Southern states.

"We've got to get (Iraqi workers) back to work," says Longo, who is a West Point graduate and former Army captain who taught at the Army's military college in 1991 and 1992. "Otherwise, my buddies are going to keep getting … blown up."

Longo says the deal with Mosul Ready to Wear, a state-owned factory in northern Iraq, was made after he was approached by a Defense Department team connecting American businesses to suppliers in Iraq.

At $10,000, the order is small, but the price was "comparably priced or lower" than what he normally pays, he says. The boys shirts will sell for $8, and the tracksuits will sell for $20, Longo says.

Hopes for a 'great deal'

Sami Al-Araji, deputy prime minister of Industry and Minerals, which runs all of Iraq's state-owned factories, says the deal is the first to bring together an American retailer with an Iraqi state-owned enterprise.

"It will be a great deal," Al-Araji said. "For the first time, our product produced in our country will be in American stores. … And if Iraq succeeds in this, it means Iraq will be able to capture a percentage of the American market for our products."

The order is small for a factory the size of Mosul Ready to Wear, which produces men's suits, teen clothing and athletic wear primarily for the domestic market. Together with the Mosul Textile Factory next door, it employs about 3,500 people, Al-Araji says. The plant was shut down for about six months after the 2003 U.S. invasion and is now operating at 30% to 40% of capacity, Al-Araji says. With access to spare parts, continuous power and raw materials, it could return to 90% of capacity, he says.