Made in USA vs. overseas

[OldSchoolRanger]

Kudos to Donny McCall for wanting to take care of his own.  More of our businesses should follow his example.  Wishing the best to McCall, and hoping his business really takes off.  Comments?

‘Shark’ bite The topic of our time — Made in USA vs. overseas — played out in the most unlikely place, a reality show By MICHAEL STARR
 Last Updated: 3:51 AM, January 31, 2012
 Posted: 11:03 PM, January 30, 2012
             More Print   A highly emotional moment on “Shark Tank” last week — where the show’s entrepreneurs began arguing about the economics of exporting jobs overseas — has unexpectedly struck a chord with the show’s fans.
It began when inventor Donny McCall appeared on last Friday’s show seeking $100,000 — and offering the show’s judges a 10 percent stake in his company — to manufacture a detachable cargo equipment holder for pickup trucks called “Invis-A-Rack.”
But McCall clashed with judges Mark Cuban, Barbara Corcoran, Robert Herjavec, Daymond John and Kevin O’Leary when they insisted that the product had to be manufactured overseas if McCall’s company had any expectation of succeeding.
    ABC  USA ALL THE WAY: Donny McCall (right) told the panel of investors (left) that he won’t produce overseas.   McCall stubbornly stuck to his guns, insisting the Invis-A-Rack be manufactured in his home state, North Carolina, in order to create much-needed jobs.
“We’re just in an economically depressed region of North Carolina,” he told the judges. “We’ve had textiles over the years that have gone away, so we’re kind of stuck there.
“I believe in what I’m doing right now,” he said. “If I can help [the local economy] in any way, I will, but [creating the product offshore] is not a way I believe I can help.”
Ultimately, the entrepreneurs all refused to invest in his company because of his insistence on making it in the US.
The confrontation was a scene out of the current economic debate over jobs, globalization and America’s future in a world where it does not seem able to compete.
It also made a hero out of McCall.
The show’s message boards lit up over the weekend with outraged fans.
“I believe the Sharks dropped the ball on this one,” Tom53092 wrote. “They fixated on getting him to offshore production to Asia to get the price down. Typical lemming thinking that you see with a lot of venture capitalists.”
“I was so proud of that young man for sticking to his guns, and he didn’t change his mind about his values just because the Sharks wanted him to send it overseas,” wrote StarrMaddie.
“Must-watch clip,” declared the reality TV blog Reality Blurred. “ ‘Shark Tank’s’ millionaires emotionally argue for manufacturing overseas.”
The judges argued that manufacturing the Invis-A-Rack domestically made no business sense.
“You’re being particularly insistent and close-minded, and that’s a very bad partner to be in business with,” Corcoran said, passing on the offer.
“For me, as an investor, if you don’t want to do what it takes, that’s the problem,” O’Leary said.
The investors argued that McCall could provide jobs here in other areas besides manufacturing — but only if the company survived.
And the only way to succeed was to have the product made overseas.
“I want to take care of my own,” a disappointed McCall said after being shut out.

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/tv/shark_bite_03wOsAvYSSDjl9GTysPZpK#ixzz1l32XnDyN

[BUGEYE]

I try my best to buy american made products except onions.  peruvian sweets are better than texas sweets or vidalias.

[burntmuch]

Good for him. Hopefully Someone will back him, & put some people to work,
  I try to buy American made as much as possible. It makes sense to me. I pay a little more for made in the USA. Its tuff sometimes though. Clothing for 3 kids. Its hard to buy made in USA.

[ceadersavage2]

Its realy hard to find things made `100% here

[finisher]

The only American Vs. overseas experience I can really comment on with direct knowledge is with Cold Steel Knives. I've bought and sold and collected for about 12 years now. I witnessed the companies shift from using Camillus ( a very old school US manufacturer RIP) to outsourcing to China.
Cold steel insisted it was for economic reasons, however Cold Steel is a MARKETING company, not a knife manufacturer.
 
Funny thing is, even their Chinese made versions (which are excellent knives) of Cold Steels classics like the Trail Master, Recon Tanto, etc. are not so much cheaper than their American counterparts.
 
Every business must make a profit to survive, but I suspect that the case here as in many, many cases is simple greed.
 
I could be way off base in this accusation, but I was sad to see it happen. I remember as a kid, when Cold Steel was just breaking out into the scene, seeing Lyne Thompson himself, at the gun shows in So. Cal, Punching holes in car hoods and FLEXING Trail Masters in vises.
 
These were knives made in the USA by American workers. They weren't super cheap but for what you paid, you got a Knife that would be an heirloom to be passed down for generations, not just for gathering dust in a safe but for serving you hard in the best and worst of times.
 
I for one will pay for any product that is built to last, built with the ethic in mind that that company can afford to say "BACKED FOR LIFE" because they did it right the first time. I might have to save my pennies to do it, but it'll be worth it in the LONG RUN (short sightedness and convenience are allies to greedy corporate manufacturers) and theives to the consumers.

[OldSchoolRanger]

The only American Vs. overseas experience I can really comment on with direct knowledge is with Cold Steel Knives. I've bought and sold and collected for about 12 years now. I witnessed the companies shift from using Camillus ( a very old school US manufacturer RIP) to outsourcing to China.
Cold steel insisted it was for economic reasons, however Cold Steel is a MARKETING company, not a knife manufacturer.
 
Funny thing is, even their Chinese made versions (which are excellent knives) of Cold Steels classics like the Trail Master, Recon Tanto, etc. are not so much cheaper than their American counterparts.
 
Every business must make a profit to survive, but I suspect that the case here as in many, many cases is simple greed.
 
I could be way off base in this accusation, but I was sad to see it happen. I remember as a kid, when Cold Steel was just breaking out into the scene, seeing Lyne Thompson himself, at the gun shows in So. Cal, Punching holes in car hoods and FLEXING Trail Masters in vises.
 These were knives made in the USA by American workers. They weren't super cheap but for what you paid, you got a Knife that would be an heirloom to be passed down for generations, not just for gathering dust in a safe but for serving you hard in the best and worst of times.
 
I for one will pay for any product that is built to last, built with the ethic in mind that that company can afford to say "BACKED FOR LIFE" because they did it right the first time. I might have to save my pennies to do it, but it'll be worth it in the LONG RUN (short sightedness and convenience are allies to greedy corporate manufacturers) and theives to the consumers.

The reason that the price of a Chinese made version wasn't so much cheaper than the cost of an American made Cold Steel product was because Cold Steel demanded that the quality be at a certain level, along with similar demands in their quality control.  That is my point, American products are competitive with products made in China.  If the quality is the same, the price is close.  Donny's stand is more along the lines of wanting to do right by his "neighbors", and the need for jobs here in the US.

Without pride in workmanship, just being "made in America", doesn't cut it with me.  I have wanted to buy American made products in the past, but because the quality was shoddy, compared to an item made overseas, I reluctantly purchased the "made overseas"  brand.

[SHOOTALL]

I have no idea how many jobs would be in the factory but he denied all the jobs of sales , shipping etc.