Price is paramount at retail these days, as consumers continue to hunt for bargains amid the recession's gloom. But a number of domestic menswear manufacturers are asking shoppers to consider another factor when making purchases: patriotism.

As the stock market fluctuates, fortunes evaporate, major companies file for bankruptcy, and the ranks of the nation's unemployed rise, vendors that produce in the U.S. and retailers that specialize in domestic apparel believe a wave of nationalism will prompt some consumers to seek out apparel made in America.

Bill Thomas, founder and chief executive officer of Bills Khakis, said the desire among retailers for American-made apparel is stronger than a year ago. "People are starved for things that are true to what they are," said Thomas. "There's more relevance for these products now."

It seems like an antiquated sentiment in a post-North American Free Trade Agreement economy. After all, what does "buy American" mean in a world where Ralph Lauren, the epitome of American style, produces its suits in Italy, and Hugo Boss, the uber-German brand, makes suits and trousers in Cleveland?

The global supply chain suggests the apparel industry is a post-national business in which consumers are more likely to respond to brand than country of origin. There is a well-known story of an executive at Ermenegildo Zegna, who, when asked by a reporter where a certain suit was made, responded, "It is not made in Italy or Portugal; it is made in Zegna." When the world is flat, no one is supposed to notice the country of origin, or so the logic goes.

But according to a number of retailers and vendors, the economic crisis is causing some consumers to pay more attention to not only how much they are spending, but also how they are spending it.

"I believe there is a growing sentiment for products made here," said Leonard Simon, owner of Wright & Simon, a men's store in downtown Wilmington, Delaware, that specializes in domestically produced classic apparel such as Hickey Freeman and Corbin. "There's a little more patriotism out there in the world than there was before. For me, it's a way to separate myself from other retailers."

Simon is planning to promote domestically made products in-store. He's not alone. Individualized Apparel Group, the privately owned company that manages a portfolio of brands including Oxxford and Gitman Brothers, is organizing trunk shows with retailers around its "Made in America" goods.

"'Made in America' is cool," said Joe Blair, the president of IAG. "It gives retailers the opportunity to tell their customers a new story."

Schott Brothers Inc., the outerwear maker that produces half of its jackets in New Jersey, is emphasizing that story as well. It's playing up its domestic manufacturing on hangtags, profiling factory employees in communications with retailers and is considering installing a Web cam in the factory so consumers can watch jackets worm through the production line.

"People are starting to care a little more about where their clothes are made," said Jason Schott, the company's chief operating officer and great-grandson of the founder. "It's a niche customer that pays attention to these things, but I hear from our customers that more people are asking about it."