Strickler named U.S. textile trade negotiator

Strickler named U.S. textile trade negotiator    The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said Gail Strickler will head textile trade negotiations.
   As the new assistant U.S. trade representative for textiles, Strickler will be responsible for supervising negotiations affecting textile and apparel products, advising U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk on textile and apparel trade policy matters, and working to expand the industry’s access to overseas markets.
   Strickler served as vice president of the global apparel division at Duro Textile, which acquired Saxon Textile Corp. For 26 years, Strickler was with Saxon working her way up from product development manager to vice president and then president and chief executive officer.
   Most recently, she served as associate director for the Institute for Textiles and Apparel Product Safety at Philadelphia University’s College of Textiles and Sciences.
   Strickler was president of the Textiles Distributors Association for five years. She also served on the board for the National Council of Textile Organizations for five years and has been a board member for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Cotton Board since 2002.