I'm rubbish at links, so here's a cut/paste job on the article I spoke of earlier in the thread. It could have something to do with why what's instore is so uninspiring...all the good stuff is sitting in customs!
Ananova:
More Than £50m Of Chinese Clothes Blocked
More than £50m of Chinese-made clothing heading for the UK has been blocked from entering the country.
It means some shops could run out of trousers, pullovers, blouses and other items in the coming months, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) said.
The clothing is barred from entering Europe because of a recent change to EU quotas for clothing and textiles imported from China.
A number of 2005 quotas are already full, meaning further imports of affected goods are held at ports and airports across Europe and denied entry.
Alisdair Gray, director of the BRC in Brussels, said the huge volume of barred clothing had caused a crisis for the smaller UK clothing stores.
"A small retailer has probably invested all of last year's profits in this year's Autumn-Winter collection. They have paid for their products which are now stuck in a warehouse," he said.
A new quota agreement between EU and China was signed on June 10 and ratified on July 12. It affects ten Chinese textile and clothing products.
The system was brought in to replace previous quotas which expired on January 1 this year.