Made in America: A Call to Arms or Home Decor Fad?

Made in America is more than a slogan. For some, it signals a desire among home decor consumers and retailers alike to buy and sell items that came from this county.

“People want to buy American,” said Jo Ann Miller-Marshall, executive vice president of trade shows for AmericasMart in Atlanta. “Our exhibitors are emphasizing their made-in-America products or lines in their showrooms, something they didn’t do a few years ago. It didn’t matter as much to retailers or to consumers. But now it does.

"People feel that when you buy American you are creating jobs or helping keep jobs in this country. They feel they are doing their bit for the economy and for other Americans by buying American. It matters to them.”

Retail Trend

There are relatively few issues that most Americans agree upon, but the made-in-America movement very well may be one. The job creation possibilities alone excite some people. The Washington, D.C-based Economic Policy Institute, an independent think tank, estimated that between 2001 and 2010 more than 2.8 million American jobs were lost, mostly to China. The logic is that if more people bought American-made products, more Americans would have to work to supply the demand.

Consumers seem to be responding. According to a 2011 survey by Schneider Associates of Boston and Sentient Decision Science of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, 60 percent of consumers polled -- up from 48 percent four years earlier -- said their purchasing decisions were influeced by whether the item in question is made in America.

For its January 2012 show, AmericasMart, a leading home furnishings and gift wholesale market, took notice. It offered "Made in America," a wholesale category with more than 75 participating vendors, displaying a wide variety of products, many of which were made from recycled or discarded materials.

"The response was overwhelming,” said Miller-Marshall. “We did it because our retailers kept saying they needed American products. We also kept hearing that American companies, many of whom are small businesses or mom-and-pop shops, needed a concise and cost-effective way to reach buyers.”

Among the exhibitors was EcoSeaTile LLC of Mount Desert, Maine. The company makes vibrant eco-friendly tiles, wine stoppers, and picture frames using shells -- including those of lobsters, mussels, clams, scallops and oysters.

“We push the made-in-America theme hard,” said Ronald Holliday of EcoSeaTile. “And people are responding. It’s important. It’s not a fad.”

One Eighty Design makes industrial-looking bowls, vases and wall hangings. Owner and designer Tammy Roy scours industrial scrap yards and landfills for damaged steel and discarded metal pieces and then welds them together.

“We’re a small operation,” said Candy Viegut, office manager of the Stratford, Wisconsin, company. “But our first order was from Switzerland. Yes, we are proud to be made in America. It helps.”

Diane Sparrow, creative director of Osage, Iowa-based Milkhouse Candle Creamery, said she's noticed a change in attitude among buyers regarding American-made products.

“When buyers call us, one of the first questions they ask is if our product is made in America,” Sparrow said. “That wasn’t the case six months ago. We are getting an overwhelming response because people want to keep the jobs here.”

As American As It Gets

Milkhouse Candle Creamery screams "Made in America." For starters, it’s based in Osage, Iowa, a town of fewer than 3,500 people in America’s heartland. The soy candles are infused with pure beeswax from the local agriculture. And how’s this for American? Milkhouse offers 50 different scents -- one for each state. They include apple strudel, buds & berries, cranberry amaretto and vanilla.

“We do everything in the area," said business development manager Eric Sparrow. "We are also very intent on using made-in-America products ourselves -- such as our jars and containers.”

In keeping with the Americana theme, Milkhouse candles are in homemade containers such as butter jars, mugs and milk bottles. In early 2011, the company created an earthenware crock collection consisting of 6 oz., 8 oz. and 48 oz. crock jars, vintage-style cookie jars and loaf pans that may be reused after the long-burning candle is extinguished.

“We even give out 60 recipes for each of our candle crocks,” Sparrow said.

Bringing It Back Home

“I am a job creator,” said Rebecca Wood of her Athens, Georgia, pottery workshop, R. Wood Studio, where 11 craftsmen create and hand-paint colorful dishes, bowls, mugs and one-of-a-kind pieces made from red clay.

“When you buy a product made in this country, you get a great product, but you have more of a comfort level,” she said. “You know the ingredients are safe. You know the paints I use don’t have lead in them or other toxins. You have an extra level of confidence in what you’re buying.”

Another part of the made-in-America lure is many of the products have a story. Take Walpole, Massachusetts-based Lazy Hill Farm Designs, which sells birdhouses made from solid, cellular vinyl as well as handcrafted mailbox and lantern posts, planter and window boxes.

“People like to hear our story, and they really like the part where we took jobs from China and brought them back to this country,” said general manager Kate Sandvos.

The company was once owned by an elderly North Carolina woman who made the birdhouses herself. But she later had them made in China. When Lazy Hill Farm Designs bought the company, it immediately started planning ways to bring the jobs home.

“Really, when you analyze it, when you deal with a country like China, you have to place huge upfront orders and pay upfront as well," Sandvos said. "Then you have the lawyers and all the shipping hassles. Sure, per piece may be cheaper, but when you factor in everything else, it’s less expensive and less of a hassle to make products in the U.S.”

It took the company a few years to get the kinks out, but as of 2012 the products are made in Maine. During the peak season, the company employs 200 people.

“Retailers promoting made-in-America products and buyers asking for them may make the difference between a small company going out of business or going to the next level of success,” Miller said. “Made in America really makes a difference in the lives of Americans.”