Importing Garment Stocklots into the USA: Customs, Clearance and the Resale Math

The American sizing and category advantage

Pakistani export production is cut to American specifications daily — the US is one of its largest export markets — so stocklots sourced from export overruns fit American customers without sizing conversion. For US resellers accustomed to Asian mixed lots running two sizes small, this is the single biggest operational difference: goods sort by standard US sizes and sell without the return-rate penalty of misfit.

Category strengths run to what American factories outsource: knitwear — t-shirts, polos, hoodies, fleece — plus denim, workwear-adjacent items and childrenswear. Mixed lots built from export overrun skew heavily toward these categories, which is precisely where US discount demand is deepest.

Freight and CBP clearance: what US buyers must get right

Karachi ships to the US East Coast (New York/New Jersey, Savannah) and Gulf (Houston) in 4–7 weeks; a 40ft high-cube carries 25,000–40,000 mixed pieces. Duty on most cotton and synthetic apparel ranges 10–16% on customs value, with no federal sales tax at import — state sales tax applies at your resale stage instead. Your customs broker needs the commercial invoice, packing list and bill of lading with precise goods descriptions: new first-quality surplus, not used clothing — the categories are regulated very differently, and misdeclaration is the expensive mistake.

The trademark exposure in the US is the strictest in the world: CBP actively records trademarks and can seize unauthorised branded goods, and right-holder enforcement is aggressive. The professional answer is also the profitable one — unbranded stocklots avoid the entire question. US buyers who standardise on unbranded mixed lots never spend a dollar on trademark defence.

Operational note: US buyers need a customs bond (continuous bond if importing regularly), and the importer of record handles ISF filing 72 hours before loading. A competent freight forwarder runs this workflow routinely — budget roughly $2,500–4,000 in total clearance and drayage costs per container at most ports.

Channels that clear US container volume

The bin-store and liquidation economy — spreading from the Northeast across the country — buys mixed apparel pallets continuously and clears them at fixed price points; flea-market traders across the Sun Belt and Midwest buy weekly; off-price jobbers in New York, Atlanta, Dallas and Los Angeles absorb wholesale quantities by category; and the eBay/Poshmark/Mercari reseller economy converts sorted singles into direct-to-consumer margin.

The math that works: container FOB $1.50–4.00 per piece plus freight and clearance lands goods at a per-piece cost domestic jobbers cannot approach. Break the lot into streams — jobber quantities, pallet sales to bin stores, sorted singles online — and a single container generates three margin layers. Seasonal timing: autumn goods land August–September, back-to-school kidswear by July, and the Q4 gifting window rewards every category.

Specification and verification for first orders

Specify in your enquiry: unbranded, US sizing, category mix (knits/denim/kids ratios), season for your landing window, and grade composition in writing. Verify the supplier's registration and warehouse on video, pay deposit-plus-documents, and run third-party inspection on the first container — Pakistani suppliers court US buyers and accept every element of this discipline as routine.

We supply US buyers regularly: unbranded mixed apparel stocklots, grade-documented, CIF to New York, Savannah or Houston, with lot composition built to your channel mix. Current availability and container pricing: WhatsApp +44 7424 272859 — include your state, target landing month and sales channels.