Manufacturers “Reshoring” Jobs for American Workers

Channel Craft's Pennsylvania factory houses 70 employees making traditional American toys
Channel Craft’s Pennsylvania factory houses 70 employees making traditional American toys

According to the advocacy group Reshoring Initiative, the number of jobs being brought back to the USA by U.S. companies (“reshoring”) has increased by ten times the number in 2010. Several major companies and some less well-known were featured by USA Today as bringing back thousands of jobs that had been previously been outsourced, such as Harley-Davidson, which announced plans in July to reshore several hundred jobs to avoid tarrifs imposed by the EU.

This newsletter features “Made in USA” product lines every October, believing that it is important for the economic health of the country to continue making things in the USA. Below is a sampling of CAMEO EZ© clients with product lines Made in USA*.

Golden Hill Studios founder Bette Hestle (right) and Sarah Hurst discuss a new design in their upstate New York facility.
Golden Hill Studios founder Bette Hestle (right) and Sarah Hurst discuss a new design in their upstate New York facility.

Located south of Pittsburgh on the banks of the Monongahela River in Charleroi, PA, Channel Craft has been manufacturing Authentic American Toys, Games and Puzzles that are “Quality Crafted” right here in the U.S.A. for over 35 years now! You’ll find American Pastimes that are produced by skilled craftsmen and women to ensure aesthetic beauty, durability and great play value. All Channel Crafted Boomerangs are handcrafted and guaranteed to return if thrown properly. No two models have the same flight pattern and will possess flight qualities of distance, elevation, and hoverability unique to that distinct model.

Bette Hestle’s grandmother started collecting hand painted glassware as a young mother and passed her love of the art on to her granddaughter. In 1999 by Bette founded Golden Hill Studio. Bette has lived and painted on Golden Hill in Western New York for 38 years. She has a background in art from Stephens College and the University of Tennessee. All of the design work is done by Bette and Sarah Hurst. Now there are many local artists who do the painting on the glass. GHS artists take great pride in each crafted piece and are a valued part of why Bette’s business is so successful. As painters, they are able to work in their homes while raising their families. The younger artists are helping to finance their own educations. This system of doing business, supports GHS philosophy of family and home as a first priority.

All natural Soy Candles from The SOi Company in Modesto California are ready for packaging.
All natural Soy Candles from The SOi Company in Modesto California are ready for packaging.

The SOi Company is a Northern-California-based company that offers an array of richly scented candles to enhance your overall wellness.
SOi candles are produced in Modesto, California using domestically sourced products. All SOi candles are hand-poured in the company’s factory using 100% all natural soy oil that is grown and produced in the USA.
Soy oil burns cleaner and up to 40% longer than paraffin-based, wax, or soy-blend candles. The SOi Company’s wide variety of scented soy candles are good for aromatherapy or to enhance any space.

KAM Manufacturing's production floor, where the award-winning Stephanie Dawn cotton handbags are made. Inset: the finished product.
KAM Manufacturing’s production floor, where the award-winning Stephanie Dawn cotton handbags are made. Inset: the finished product.

Recently awarded the title “Best Cotton Bags” by All American Reviews.com, Stephanie Dawn also earned the rank of second place (out of ten) for “Top Recommended Bags” made in the USA! For a lightweight style and long-term storage durability, Stephanie Dawn cotton handbags make beautiful accessories for any occasion! The bags come in a wide range of shapes, styles and colors giving you plenty of options to choose from. The lineup of bags are produced exclusively in America and that the founding company, KAM Manufacturing Inc., has more than 27 years of manufacturing experience with quilted cotton bags. “We choose to make our products here in the USA because we provide jobs to our local community in the Van Wert, OH area,” says the team at Stephanie Dawn. “Our customers love the high-quality of our products, the fact that they are made in the USA and they help support not only our business, but jobs to our wonderful team of employees!”

Twelve-year-old Elana Barrett her
Twelve-year-old Elena Barrett is the inventor/founder of HuggyBox. Her “HuggyBox” note cards are produced in Rochester, NY.

HuggyBox is unusual in that the company was started by an 11-year-old adopted child. When she was five, Elena Barrett’s father left a note under her pillow when he went on a business trip. The note wished her a good night’s sleep and included the word “Huggy”. It told her if she squeezed the note really tight and she would feel his hug come through the paper.

From this experience HuggyBox was born. The note cards are for sending “virtual hugs”, allowing people to stay connected. HuggyBox makes it’s products in Rochester, New York with soy-based inks on 100% recycled mixed source materials. HuggyBox is also a Proud Partner of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption. A portion of each HuggyBox sold goes to the foundation to find families for children in foster care.

Dreams After All now supplements its greeting card line with textiles and jewelry made on the east coast
Dreams After All now supplements its greeting card line with textiles and jewelry made on the east coast

Agoura Hills, California is home to Dreams After All, which for 14 years has designed and produced greeting cards, but has now added jewelry and textiles. Manufactured on the east coast of the USA, The jewelry line features pieces first cast in brass and plated in either sterling silver or 18-karat gold. They are then hand-finished. North Carolina is where the new textile products are produced. “We are very pleased to work with them to produce our new lines of home decor and wearable art with the utmost quality and craftsmanship,” says Renée Rubach, founder.

Gigi Butler has launched a line of printed textiles with Mariasch Studios of Long Island, New York.
Gigi Butler has launched a line of printed textiles with Mariasch Studios of Long Island, New York.

Mariasch Studios of Long Island, New York, is launching Gigi Butler’s line of printed textiles. Gigi’s American Dream began when she was down to her last $33 starting a cupcake shop in Nashville, TN, in 2008. That first shop grew include franchise locations with sales of $43 million in 2013. Gigi’s line includes quotes such as “bake the world a better place,” “bake your own American dream,” and “the secret ingredient is love.”