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“How many of you try to buy American made goods whenever possible?”
I’ve posed that question countless times, in countless different settings; onstage at auditoriums, in online surveys, and at intimate dinner settings. Every time I ask that question, the overwhelming majority of people raise their hands that yes, they frequently make an effort to buy American made goods.
However, the fact is that approximately 98% of all the clothing worn in the United States is manufactured overseas.
So why, if everyone wants to buy American, are the vast majority of people not? The biggest reason for that is simple: Price. It’s generally just too cost-prohibitive to buy clothing made here, and people will often opt to purchase cheaper, more disposable goods. While there has been a recent push over the last couple years to buy higher quality, (thus longer-lasting) Made in USA items, the fact remains that price will always be an enormous barrier.
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This is where the Stock Manufacturing Company comes in. We’re leveraging an innovative e-commerce solution with old school physical manufacturing to create a clothing brand that is both innovative and affordable, and we’re making it all right here in Chicago.
The concept is simple: We own a 19,000 square foot facility on the West Side, where we design and manufacture our own clothing and accessories. We then sell directly to our customers through our website, www.stockmfg.co.
On top of that, aspiring designers can submit pieces they have created to us, and if we like it we’ll put it up for pre-sale. If enough of our customers express interest in purchasing, we’ll manufacture and distribute the piece, while paying the designer a nice commission.
What we’re doing is building a collaborative, crowd-sourced clothing brand that’s both high-end and affordable, and making it all in the USA.
