Loom & Harvest Honest sourcing from Bangladesh

Levi's 'Made in Bangladesh' label: real or fake, and how to check

Correct as of 4 min read

Short answer: No, a 'Made in Bangladesh' label does not mean an item is fake. H&M, Primark, Uniqlo, Gap, Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein and Levi's all make clothes there, and Bangladesh is the world's second-largest clothing exporter. But fakes also come from Bangladesh, so the label proves nothing either way: check the seller and the style number instead.

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Key figures

The trade-off: Bangladesh makes genuine clothes for many of the world's biggest brands, which is exactly why the label cannot prove anything: US trade officials also list Bangladesh among the top five sources of counterfeit clothing. The seller and matching numbers tell you more than the country.

Still pending

  • Brands update their published factory lists several times a year; the counts here come from lists dated November 2025 to August 2026.

Does ‘Made in Bangladesh’ mean my Levi’s are fake?

No. Levi Strauss says in its annual report, filed in January 2026, that many of its products are made in countries such as Bangladesh, Pakistan, Cambodia and Vietnam. It uses about 32 countries and takes no more than 30% from any one.

Many big brands now publish lists of the factories that make their clothes, often as downloadable spreadsheets. Here is what their own lists show for Bangladesh, using our counts:

Brand (owner) Bangladesh on the brand’s own list List date
H&M 188 factories, 134 of them sewing; 4th country by factory count Aug 2026
Primark 142 of 797 factories; only China (404) has more Nov 2025
Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein (PVH) 71 facilities, 55 of them making finished goods Jul 2026
Uniqlo (Fast Retailing) 45 sites, 27 of them garment factories; 3rd after China and Vietnam Aug 2026
Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic, Athleta (Gap Inc.) 50 of 552 tier-1 factories Feb 2026

A tier-1 factory is one that makes the finished product, as opposed to a mill that makes the fabric. These lists change several times a year, so the exact numbers will move. The pattern does not: Bangladesh is a normal place for big brands to make clothes.

How big is Bangladesh in clothing?

In 2025 Bangladesh exported US$38.82 billion of clothing, a 6.76% share of world trade, according to WTO data. That made it the world’s No. 2 clothing exporter after China, which holds 27.35%. Vietnam is close behind at US$37.51 billion. Our guide to why so much clothing is made in Bangladesh has the wider picture.

Denim is where Bangladesh leads, which matters for jeans brands such as Levi’s. In 2025 it was the No. 1 denim supplier to the US, with US$955.7 million and a 25.97% share, up 34%. It was also No. 1 into the EU, with US$1.64 billion and a 29.88% share, a lead it has held since overtaking China in 2017. Those figures come from US (OTEXA) and EU (Eurostat) trade data.

Rankings move, though. For US clothing imports from January to August 2026, Bangladesh was No. 3 at US$5.39 billion, down 4.4%, behind Vietnam and China.

So why can’t the label prove anything?

Because the country label is a legal disclosure, not a mark of authenticity. In the US, for example, the FTC’s textile rules require imported clothing to name the country where it was made. A genuine item and a copy can carry the same words.

Fakes do exist. The US Trade Representative’s 2026 Special 301 report, a yearly US review of how other countries protect trademarks and copyrights, lists Bangladesh among the top five sources of counterfeit clothing worldwide. Bangladesh is not on any of the report’s watch lists. Globally, trade in fake goods reached US$467 billion in 2021.

There is also a grey area: stock lots, meaning genuine factory surplus sold off in bulk. Factories make about 5–7% extra pieces per style, and rejected, cancelled or extra pieces are sold at 30–50% off. Brands require their labels to be removed, cut or blacked out on these pieces. That report dates from 2013, so treat it as background. Either way, surplus is not sold by the brand.

Three checks that tell you more than the label

  1. Check the seller, not the label. Buy from the brand’s own shop or website, or from a retailer the brand lists. A random “export surplus” page has no backing from the brand.
  2. Match the numbers. The style or reference number on the sewn-in care label should match the price tag and the product on the brand’s website. The care label should be printed cleanly and sewn in neatly.
  3. Look up the RN on US-market items. An RN is a registration number that the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issues to US businesses that make, import, distribute or sell textiles. It can replace the company name on a label, and it is optional (FTC). Search it in the FTC’s RN database at ftc.gov/rn-database/search. It should come back to the brand, its licensee or its importer.

A mismatch in any check is a red flag. A match is not proof, because fakers can copy numbers, and many labels show a company name instead of an RN.

What this means for your order

If you are a brand sourcing from Bangladesh, use the same public lists the other way round. When a factory says it makes for H&M, Primark or Gap, search that brand’s latest published list for the factory’s name, and ask questions if it is missing. Then run our five checks before a deposit. Loom & Harvest does factory checks, sample coordination and inspections for fixed fees, and you can send us your product and quantity here.

Common questions

Are Levi's made in Bangladesh real?

They can be. Levi Strauss says in its annual report that many of its products are made in countries such as Bangladesh, so the label alone is not a sign of a fake. Check the seller and the style number instead.

Which big brands make clothes in Bangladesh?

Brands' own published lists show factories in Bangladesh for H&M, Primark, Uniqlo, Gap Inc. and PVH (Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein). Levi Strauss names Bangladesh among its sourcing countries.

What is an RN number on a clothing label?

It is a number the US Federal Trade Commission issues to US textile businesses, and it can replace the company name on a label. You can search it in the FTC's RN database: a mismatch is a red flag, but a match is not proof.

Is factory surplus from Bangladesh genuine?

Genuine surplus does exist, but the brand does not sell it, and brands require their labels to be removed, cut or blacked out. Our source on this dates from 2013.

Sources

This guide is correct as of . If a figure has changed since, tell us.