With Los Angeles gearing up to host the 2028 Summer Olympics, opportunities abound for the city’s businesses, from those engaged in hospitality to those driving the infrastructure improvements needed to support the influx of thousands of athletes and millions of sports enthusiasts.

And the Olympics return to L.A. for the first time since 1984, the city is uniquely positioned to take on the creation of another major commerce driver: sports apparel and merchandise.

L.A.’s apparel and footwear factories have been gearing up to meet that demand, which will escalate sharply over the course of the next year. On Thursday, the Downtown L.A.-based Garment Worker Center (GWC) announced the launch of a platform designed to propel opportunities for the local workforce while ensuring that facilities are operating under safe and ethical conditions. Dubbed WEAR LA, the platform will support the more than 20,000 garment workers currently staffing L.A.’s factories.

During a typical year, the industry is responsible for driving $1.5 billion in revenue, but 2028 is guaranteed to far surpass that figure. Couple with the fact that global sourcing maps have been shifting due to the impacts of tariffs and geopolitical conflict, L.A. makers now perceive an unprecedented chance to solidify a reshoring renaissance.

According to GWC, in addition to prioritizing suppliers with duty-free access to their end market, many fashion brands are also seeking out ethical and sustainable supply chain partners to protect them from regulatory risk.

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