My Blog

Seems like only a couple of weeks ago that I did my last blog. Guess it was 6 months or so.

We've been busy here, especially in the store. There is such a plethora of US made products that it can make your head spin. What can make your head spin even more is the investment you have to make in inventory, advertising and web activity while building your business while you don't earn enough back to take a paycheck. And then you listen to the news (I'm a news junky) and hear what a horrible and greedy person you are for trying to make a profit off what you've invested in. Oh well, when people grow up (or lose their government hand out) they'll learn.

Anyway, we're very exited about what we're calling our Arts and Crafts Shows. We're trying to target crafters, artisans, small manufacturers, entrepreneurs within a 100 mile radius who produce consumer products or perform a service for consumers who are not part of a national chain. Our shows will be in the large open space behind our store. We anticipate 10-15 10'x10' booths at each show with off street parking.

Our first show is August 4. We got a late start on getting our invitations out because permitting took longer than anticipated. Keep us in your prayers that we get a good response to fill the event. We already have radio and newspaper ads set up. Hate to have lots of customers show up and only a couple of booths filled. Oh well - we WILL have a portable toilet......

Have a great week!

If you are, you may have found it difficult to find products to buy. Here at our store we've been grateful for our increased traffic. Many people have come in to thank us for carrying US made products that they can see and touch. Yes, the internet is a great way to locate US made products but not always the best way to sell them. Shoppers still like to see what they're getting/giving. If you have lots of time you can find items made in America in most major department stores.

During this holiday season we have found that many small companies, 1-5 people, have wonderful items for sale but don't feel they can produce enough product to support wide spread internet sales. This is where shop local, shop Mom and Pop stores, comes in. It's in these small, local outlets you'll find unique items, caringly produced, usually locally. You can find the small stores on line before you visit them to save time.

In our own store we have fleece socks, todler bibs, hand-blown glass ornaments, stained glass and hand made glass dishes among other items that you can't see on line because there's only one or 2 of a kind. We're thinking of adding a "Store Only" catalog to our website for these types of items but the time to update the site with pictures as these items come and go is difficult to come by.

To all of you who have made the effort to Buy American during this holiday season, I thank you and the US manufacturers, from 1 to 1000+ employees, thank you. You are helping us stay in business in the US and you are helping to bring our US economy back one purchase at a time and that's the best Christmas gift you can give.

 

It's been a while since I blogged. I wanted to be cheerful and optimistic. The more I try the harder it's become. Why? Government!

So, for any of you who might read this - there are a minimum of 3 layers of government: Federal, State and local. For some there are 4 - 5 layers - County, city you live in and city you work in. All these layers impose regulations on businesses while implying that these regulations don't affect the population at large. Well, they do. They impact the price of everything you buy to whether or not you'll ever be hired for a job and how much an employer will be able afford to pay you. The government (all levels) have turned companies into arms of the IRS and make them, through regulation, collect funds from individuals and turn them over to the government (all levels). Then the government, with media assistance, convinces individuals that "it's the corporations' fault" - that somehow corporations aren't made up of people who are neighbors, parents, friends...

Start with a small energy example. We now have alot of "environment protection" laws that forbid or make it very costly to use energy - unless "the Government" likes you. For example - Exxon was fined over $600,000 for the death of  62 birds (not on the endangered species list) caught in an oil slick. You're probably thinking they deserve it. At the same time, in CA, wind farms kill 1,000 birds a day including protected golden eagles that carry a fine of $10,000/bird killed and up to 5 years jail time. The 1,000 dead per day has been going on for a year+ yet NOT A SINGLE FINE has been paid by the wind farms AND your tax money, Federal (and State if you're in CA), is paying to kill 1,000 birds a day. So is the environment protected uniformly as you might expect?

In the example above, when you buy gasoline or heating oil (big seller in the Northeast) you are paying not only for the best compliance Exxon can do, including permits, corporate taxes, minute regulations imposed by all levels of government, but also for the fines that are imposed when there's a mistake. You know there'll be a mistake because people do the actual work and people are fallible. The Federal government (and now many state governments) are requiring "environmentally safe" alternative energy supplies like wind. With wind the "government" has decided that killing birds is OK and "good" for the environment - except for maybe the rotting carcasses of the dead birds, including those "endangered" except not protected because the government has not yet slammed the wind industry with fines. Wind also costs you more than oil (and other carbon based sources) to build and operate and won't provide energy when there's no wind and don't forget to add in your tax money that subsidizes this "environmentally safe" (unless you're a bird) energy source.

You can see that Government regulation can be a bit confusing and contradictory. Now let's look at the new regulations that are being added to every aspect of business by the current administration and you'll find a maelstrom of orders, directives and regulations so big you can barely put 16 hours a week into your small business that doesn't incorporate learning about new impositions and reporting requirements that give you: first - reason to freeze hiring, second - reason to freeze pay, third - layoff, fourth - reason to shut down or hold your breath to see if you can survive until the next administration. For these new regulations (many voted bipartisan against by Congress),  I'm giving you an article to read from the National Federation of Independent Business which represents U.S. small business (those that provide 60-70% of all U.S. jobs). It's worth it for you to do the cut & paste if the link doesn't work:

http://www.nfib.com/press-media/press-media-item?cmsid=57977&utm_campaign=FPP&utm_source=SmartBrief&utm_medium=Email

The answer is yes, but.... I'm going to paraphrase an article I read in the past few months from The Worcester Business Journal to explain the "but".

Know that the U.S. is still the top, most productive manufacturer in the world.

One local small machine shop needed to expand production to meet growth requirements of incoming orders. They evaluated moving against adding a second shift. The second shift would have included a minimum of 2 but more likely 3 jobs with annual base payroll of $150,000. At least 1 machinist, 1 quality inspector  and 1 packer would be needed. With all the uncertainty coming from the Federal government about taxes and health care plus the rising cost of mandated health care in MA as well as state taxes, fees and regulations, they were hesitant.  The overhead (what the company has to pay on top of the payroll) was estimated between $75,000 and $150,000 above the expected payroll, possibly more. The cost projections were too uncertain and too high to hire anyone. They were in a dilemma until they looked at automatic equipment. They discovered that they could buy machines to automatically make parts, and inspect them for $300,000. Now, with the new equipment, they can complete their normal work day, set the machines to run, lock the doors and come back to bulk packed finished product with complete computerized inspection records - no sick days, no no-shows, no vacations, no retirement or bonuses and cost effective machine maintenance.

So our local manufacturer has expanded the productivity of his existing employees by adding machines to increase their manufacturing capability. As I recall from the article, the machines he purchased were made in the U.S. - also a plus. While the decision of this small company was appropriate, it reflects how hard it is to increase our manufacturing labor force. While the first thought of this company was to hire new people, there are 3 people in this area who did not get those jobs.

This is why a stable government, with stable laws and regulations is so necessary. Historically, the stability in the U.S. has been the reason it's been a good place to invest. Today, the rules are changing, it seems monthly if not daily - EPA, HHS, DOE, OSHA and the equivalent local agencies seem to embed new regulations so often a small, or even medium, company can be overwhelmed. If a company is going to grow, especially a small one, they have to know what their expected operating costs will be. If they can determine that, they can create jobs, if not, they automate or try to hold their own until the negatives turn positive or they close and the jobs go across the border - sometimes to an other state, other times to another country.

Here's an interesting video on the impact of licensing: http://www.pjtv.com/?cmd=mpg&mpid=113&load=5354

IF you keep your eyes and ears open and are willing to apply yourself and learn, no matter how large or how small the company, manufacturing touches just about every profession. This is especially important exposure for people who don't go to college, those who don't complete college or those who complete Liberal Arts and haven't a clue what to do. Manufacturing is even a training ground for High School dropouts who need to be paid as they learn (and perform).

A small to medium manufacturer is a great training ground whether you start in a clerical or shop floor position.

From the office you can learn bookkeeping, basic accounting, payroll, sales, customer service, contracting (legal exposure), buying, licensing, marketing, reception work, quality documentation, what constitutes professional entertainment AND how your government supports or attacks the business with regulations and taxes.

From the shop floor, as part of a team, you can learn how to produce a product, how to operate specialized equipment, how to track documents required to support manufacturing, how to safely handle chemicals, identify age-controlled materials, shipping and receiving, OSHA regulations, quality inspection and auditing, equipment calibration, inventory reporting, unit of measure, time/product scheduling, how to innovate to save production costs. You also learn alot of regulations - some that protect your health and some that seem pretty silly.

From both clerical and shop floor positions you can learn about shop scheduling, product budgets, first aid including CPR, basic Engineering and math that can be applied by the lay person. You'll also learn to recognize strengths and weaknesses, yours and those of others, including the degreed employees.

From any position, over time, you'll see how each of the activities briefly mentioned above interlink and how performance and the success of the business is dependent on the teamwork of all employees, especially those that support the order moving efficiently through the company to customer delivery.

In a manufacturing firm you can find work that you prefer and can develop skills that will support you in a career or in your next job. You'll also learn to identify what you really don't like so you can avoid that (or delegate it) as you take control of your future.

Because it was my career for many years until I entered this retail venture.

When I say manufacturing you need to know I mean a company that produces a product with 200 people or less. My preference is under 150 employees because you can get to know your fellow employees' and their capabilities. When you can learn to complement each others strengths and weaknesses you have a better work environment and a better product.

I like manufacturing because there's so many different levels and kinds of education in employees' background. I myself am a Liberal Arts graduate with a History major and English and French. It's the kind of degree that has you end up as a teacher or grad student. I didn't do that. I was bored. I got a job. I was lucky - I could only type 20 words a minute and had no exposure to much of anything but schools, retail, trains, trucks, lawyers, doctors - all the easy things you can see.

My first job was in an R&D lab at a company in Newton, MA that manufactured photo-resist and electroless plating chemicals. These were used in the manufacture of printed circuit boards when computers filled the room rather than your pocket. I had chemistry in high school and a bit more in college. I catalogued the books, documents, sample chemicals and periodicals in their library. When that was done, they had me do research in books and periodicals in support of chemists and technicians.

Part of my job was to ensure the R&D Lab had equipment like hot plates, bunsen burners, beakers, notebooks, etc. I also was the door keeper outside the locked lab - yup, security. I was supposed to let authorized people in but it was hard when I kept having to look for the lab equipment. The chemists and technicians used to lock unused equipment in their desks and assigned cabinets to have it ready for their next experiment. We always seemed to be short and we were pushing our budget limits.

The company was small enough that we had lunch in a common cafeteria. I happened to talk with the guy who controlled the inventory that supported the chemical manufacturing area. Based on that conversation I had the idea to centralize all the R&D Lab equipment. I made the suggestion to my supervisor. She got permission to go ahead directly from the CEO. No special forms filled out with cost justification - just a common sense approach.

We had to create a stockroom. This required an internal work request because the maintenance crew (not just cleaning) because they had to schedule the work. I had input to the size the room should be - remember geometry? That was an interesting exercise. I learned alot from those guys. While the work was proceeding, I found out there was a Sales Lab with the same equipment problem. We consolidated both Lab Equipment stores into the same stockroom. We also instituted a flip-card inventory similar to the one used in manufacturing. The success of the project was seen in reduced expenses for both labs and reduced search time for me and I was assigned some new tasks.

I was only at that job for about a year because I moved and couldn't get there. (The company has since moved as well). I learned many things that I took with me: 1. Good management responds to employee suggestions 2. Inventory Control (that term came later) 3. Budget Control helps focus on core needs 4. Profits don't just come from sales, they come from all departments and employees 5. Sharing information between employees of different departments can be beneficial to the whole company

Other than being nice, is there a reason to shop for them? The answer is a very big YES.

Did you know that when you buy imports made of imported raw materials that ultimately about 85% of the $$ spent (except for sales tax) end up in that foreign country with workers in that country employed?

When you buy a product made in the USA with mostly (50%+) US material content about 85% of the $$ you spend stay in the USA and have the benefit of keeping Americans employed.

So when you consciously spend an extra $20/month on a USA made item, you not only get a quality product, but you contribute to increasing employment opportunities, perhaps as many as 3,000,000 in just one year. Imagine what you can do if you consciously spend an extra $100! Buy here http://www.mksworks.com/catalog, at our American Products Store in Cherry Valley, MA or where you prefer.

When you enter a store, ask them where their USA made products are. If they can't show you, take a minute and speak to the manager. Ask the manager to tag the shelves so you can see the American products right away the next time you come in. Even Wal-Mart still carries lots of US made items, they're just very difficult to find.

Back in April Maple Landmark, Inc., one of our suppliers of U.S. wood toys and games, sent the above question (essentially) with the following article. We like that they make their toys in the U.S. from U.S. managed forests in VT, but we had never really thought about how their competition, using plantation wood, affected our environment or the possible hazards that could impose:

A lot is said about the eco-benefits of wood grown is Asia, too bad much of it is the incomplete truth. To be sure, the idea of plantation grown trees sounds like a tremendous advantage over imagined alternatives. However, there is always more to the story. For several reasons, North American hardwoods, including our own hard maple, are superior choices.

 

1)      Plantation grown vs. Forest harvested.

Plantation trees, such as rubberwood, are easy to envision as renewable and sustainable. However, what has that done to the natural, historical ecology of that land? It has been forever supplanted. Land was cleared to grow a crop, no differently than jungle cleared in South America. The biodiversity has been eliminated.  

 

When trees are selectively harvested in our northern temperate forests, they are culled from the natural ecosystem. Modern logging techniques allow for minimal damage to the surrounding area and the natural forest continues to thrive and regenerate as it has for thousands of years.

 

Limited harvests actually increase biodiversity since the large trees are less dominant and most wildlife flourish with varied vegetation.

 

The images of a denuded landscape are part of the history of forestry throughout the world and it still happens in pockets, especially in third world countries. Generations of experience in land stewardship has taught better ways of management. In Vermont, forest coverage is increasing and, after the heavy logging of the 1800’s, is nearing that which the colonists saw when they arrived.

 

2)      Chemical safe

Wood products that come from other parts of the world have sometimes been found to be chemically stabilized or treated against pests and fungus. The Forest Products Lab in Madison, Wisconsin says in reference to rubberwood (parawood): "Lumber requires chemical dipping to control blue stain and borer attack."

 

That is not used in general application in this country with our domestic woods. Air-drying and kiln-drying are the accepted ways of removing moisture from raw lumber to be ready for further processing. Maple will take on a “sticker stain” if it is not set up properly to dry. Adding chemicals is not the answer, good mill management is the solution.

 

3)      Transportation

Wood grown and used in manufactured goods in Asia has already traveled over 10,000 miles when it reaches the US market. Most American wood products factories are near their material source. Our main mill suppliers are within 10 miles of our shop and the trees are harvested in the local region.

 

If you think floating goods over the ocean is low impact transportation, you would be wrong. Ships burn some of the nastiest of fuels, especially high in sulfur. The largest of the super freighters are each said to pollute as much in a year as 50 million cars (16 of these ships equals all the world’s cars).  

 

4)      Honest dealing

This from Ethical Corporation: “And China is major importer of illegal timber from forests in Indonesia, Cameroon, Congo and Equatorial Guinea. Though accurate figures are hard to come by, the website globaltimber.org.uk says up to half of all timber imported to China in 2004 was illegal.” Corruption in the trade of commodities, such as timber, in undeveloped countries is common. Certifications can mean very little – look at the continuing incidence of lead tainted toys discovered at our docks, practically every week.

 

We will admit that a few years ago there was a case of timber rustling in Vermont, one neighbor got angry at another and cut a few of his maples. 

 

5)      Quality and beauty

While every attempt has been made to talk up the qualities of rubberwood, it just doesn’t match the durability and beauty of our maple. Sometimes called “Asian birch,” I’ve even heard it claimed that rubberwood was in the maple family (not even close). The high-pitched attempted to make it appear to be as-good-as, most likely means it isn’t.

 

The density of hard maple is 740 kg/m3, rubberwood is 600 kg/m3, and for reference, pine is 500 kg/m3.

 

The high incidence of fully painted imported toys is designed to cover the wood, and the defects it may contain. At Maple Landmark, we are actively going the other way, showing off the unmatched beauty of our wood.