Made In America Could be Your Greatest Advantage

01.What Does Made In America Mean?

When can a product be labeled as “Made In USA?” That claim comes under the jurisdiction of the Federal Trade Commission to regulate deceptive advertising. Any U.S.-origin claim must be truthful and substantiated. A claim can be either unqualified or qualified.

“Made in USA,” “Produced in

USA” and “Manufactured in USA”

are all unqualified U.S.-origin

claims. This is the most difficult

FTC claim to achieve, and means

that “all or virtually all” of the

product has been made in the

United States. The last significant

manufacturing step needs to be

done here. Foreign components

must be a very low proportion

and not recognizable within the

finished product.

A qualified U.S.-origin claim

allows for more flexibility.

Statements such as “Made

in USA with foreign parts,”

“Produced in USA with imported

raw materials” or “Assembled

in USA” still require the last

significant manufacturing step to

be done in the U.S., but does not

require the percentage or source

country of foreign parts to be

disclosed. The manufacturer

may choose to identify foreign

content if they think it is a

desirable feature, such as

furniture made of Brazilian teak

wood.

Photo Credit: https://www.allamericanclothing.com/life/2014/07/28/made-in-usa-label-crackdown-one-more-reason-to-

02.When Do We Purchase From Overseas?

Why do companies purchase

goods from overseas?

Sometimes it is because of

unique raw materials, like pink

sapphires from Madagascar. It

may be craftsmanship which

would be difficult to duplicate

in America. Automated weaving

looms can produce sophisticated

patterns for carpeting, but the

skills of weavers are passed

down from generation to

generation.

Most of the time, products are

sourced outside U.S. borders as

a lower-cost alternative. China

is the top U.S. rival for global

manufacturing leadership, and

the overseas source that is

usually top of mind.

Why should your customers buy

products “Made in America?” We

will consider traditional reasons,

which definitely contain truth

but also deserve a more in-depth

review. Then we will take a look

at some reasons that are harder

to quantify.

Unique Materials

Sources discover in Madagascar, Africa the richest deposits of Pink Sapphire.

03.Reasons To Buy “Made in America”

Human Rights and Environmental Issues: Through our historical

eras of industrialization, the United States has developed labor and

antipollution standards, which are strictly enforced. If you buy a

product that is “Made in America,” you can feel good that the product

is made in safe working conditions without child labor, and that air,

water, and disposal pollution are minimized.

Product Safety Concerns: The ingredients, components and final

assembly of a non-domestically produced product must all meet U.S.

safety regulations. Final assembly for many advertising specialty items

isn’t a big safety concern. If the stitching of your shopping tote comes

undone, it hurts your brand image and it may be inconvenient for your

clients, but it’s seldom life threatening.

Conversely, safety requirements for ingredients and components

are critical for promotional items in personal care, health or beauty

products, or for products that may be used by children. As a result of

strict safety requirements in the U.S., sourcing from “Made in America”

companies ensures personal care specialty items you can stand

behind.

Child Labor in Developing Countries

Child labor is still a global issue.*study.com

Reasons To Buy “Made in America”

Economic Benefits: Products made in America provide economic

benefits like keeping jobs in the U.S. now and in the future, using more

domestic raw materials and putting money back into the economy.

The Alliance for American Manufacturing says that every $1 invested

in U.S. manufacturing generates $1.81 in economic activity. This leads

to lower budget and trade deficits, and helps to maintain a healthy

economy for generations to come.

Better Quality: “Made in America” goods have long benefited from a reputation of being well made and long-lasting. This is likely rooted in the work ethic of early 1900s immigrants, and sustained through a culture that enjoyed tinkering in the ga-rage to repair our own stuff for much of the 20th century.

04.Immeasurable Reasons To Buy American Made

The traditional reasons for buying “Made in America”

certainly have valid points, though we shouldn’t use them as

an absolute rallying cry. Some of the nontraditional factors,

the ones that are a little more difficult to quantify, might be

the ones that drive the true value of “Made in America” for

your business.

Managing The UnpredictableSuccessful businesses have always been the ones with more insight

– more knowledge of markets, trends and competitors, and how to

translate that insight into customer needs. That crystal ball is difficult

enough in a stable business climate. Paul Bellatone, president and

CEO of Promotional Products Association International, says today’s

promotional products industry is the opposite of static, moving

at an ever-accelerating pace of change. He supports the role for a

promotional products consultant as a business partner to their clients

rather than just a source for procuring products.

Bellatone borrows the military acronym VUCA to characterize one of

the most difficult business realities, responding to unexpected change.

He suggests that the Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity

of today’s pace of change can allow differentiation for a professional

promotional products distributor. A promotional products consultant

can be a reliable and trustworthy partner in volatile and uncertain

situations. Using their industry experience, they can be direct and

understandable to combat complexity and ambiguity.

Stabilize transactional business uncertainties.More than 250,000 different companies across 450+ NAICS codes generated Q2 2019 real gross domestic product of $2.36 trillion.

Product coming from overseas amplifies the opportunity for the

unknown. Fuel rates, shipping fees, container utilization, tariffs and

duties can all fluctuate until the time the product leaves port and

sometimes until it is landed domestically. Even if everything goes

right, lead times are measured in months, not in weeks.

When a disaster hits halfway around the globe, like the coronavirus

outbreak, supply channels can be suspended or operating at lower

capacity, causing backlogs for customers. In contrast, domestic

suppliers to the advertising specialty industry, from apparel

manufacturers to blow and injection molders, increased their

production capacity to offset orders which were on backlog from

China.

Buying “Made in America” helps to stabilize transactional business

uncertainties. There are plenty of options to find exactly what you

need. More than 250,000 different companies across 450+ NAICS

codes generated Q2 2019 real gross domestic product of $2.36

trillion. The 3-hour time difference and 2,500 miles from New York to

California can sometimes be enough of a challenge. Why add up to 12

hours and 12,000 miles if there are U.S. sources that meet your needs?

New Market ProductsFor businesses with product development, staying domestic is a

strategic advantage. Rapid prototyping is an ongoing mantra for

bringing a product to market. Experts agree that the ability for quick

changes, along with design freedom and flexibility, are important

when you are trying to get a product right. Plus seeing is believing.

By getting a prototype in the hands of senior management, they can

better understand a product’s potential and may be able to offer

some innovation of their own.

Valuing Your BrandPromotional products should be part of a marketing plan that builds

your brand. Your brand and company image are valuable. You want

a professional who can help make the best visual impact with your

advertising specialty products.

Some logo colors are difficult to match. Your selection of colors may

be limited when working with overseas suppliers. Your promotional

products consultant can help you with artwork layout, file transfers,

color approvals and all the details that keep your brand image intact.

Any set-up fees are communicated up front, which is not always the

case when dealing with overseas suppliers.

When your campaign has multiple components, getting your brand

image to coordinate across products is important. Silk screening on a

stainless tumbler needs to look the same as embroidery on the sports

bag. While some overseas suppliers can achieve this, you may need to

get proofs from more than one supplier, and these often take longer

than proofs generated in the U.S.

“Made in America” is more than a nice slogan, it is a business model

that can generate strategic advantage if you use it correctly. Go

beyond the surface to understand your customer’s true needs. Let’s

see where you, and Made in America, can help them to succeed.

05.Sources

- Most Common Country of Birth for Foreign-born Residents, excluding Mexico, Andy Ki-ersz, Business Insider, April 18, 2019.- American Factories Versus ‘Made in America’, Paul Laurenza, Industry Week, April 11, 2017.- Countries That Produce the Highest Quality Gemstones, Avnish Gempundit; June 22, 2015, https://medium.com/@avnishgempundit/countries-that-produce-the-highest-quality-gem-stones-47dab94ef43e - Steps of How Oriental Rugs Are Crafted, Alessandra Santos, July 7, 2019, https://www.rug-knots.com/blogs/rug-anatomy-101/how-are-oriental-rugs-made- How Shifting Costs are Altering the Math of Global Manufacturing, Justin Rose, Ian Colot-la, Michael McAdoo, and Will Kletter, Boston Consulting Group, December 2018.- Global Manufacturing Scorecard: How the US Compares to 18 Other Nations, Darrell M. West and Christian Lansang, Brookings Institute, July 10, 2018.- The Ugly Side of Beauty: Why Quality Ingredients Matter for Personal Care, ASI Creative Labs, February 17, 2020, https://www.asicentral.com/news/sponsoredby/raining-rose/the-ugly-side-of-beauty-why-quality-ingredients-matter-for-personal-care/- Alliance for American Manufacturing – “Buying American-Made Matters” YouTube Vid-eo Dec. 21, 2017, https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=KxyznNitf-8&fea-ture=emb_logo - Why Do We Chinese Love Coming to America? Shhh! It’s the Shopping, Yan Zhang, USA TODAY, August 13, 2019.- 5 Reasons Why Chinese Like to Buy Imported Brands, Branding in China, October 11, 2016, https://www.marketingtochina.com/5-reasons-chinese-like-buy-imported-brands/- The Pace Of Change – The Promotional Products Industry 2020, Paul Bellatone, presented at A!A Merchandising Excellence Supplier Summit, February 2020. - Federal Reserve Economic Data Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, https://fred.stlouis-fed.org/graph/?graph_id=376822&rn=2597 ; https://fred.stlouisfed.org/graph/?graph_id=347814&rn=3405- Facts About Manufacturing, The Manufacturing Institute, http://www.themanufacturingin-stitute.org - What are the Benefits of Rapid Prototyping, June 30, 2019, Founders Guide, http://found-ersguide.com/benefits-of-rapid-prototyping/- Why American Companies Refuse to Make China their Main Innovation Hub, Daniel Ren, South China Morning Post, April 19, 2018, https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/arti-cle/2142473/why-american-companies-refuse-make-china-their-main-innovation- Aakron Line Ramps Up Made-in-USA Production, Theresa Hegel, ASI Central, March 02, 2020, https://www.asicentral.com/news/newsletters/promogram/march-2020/aakron-line-ramps-up-made-in-usa-production/