Coming Home: Appliance Maker Drops China to Produce in Texas

[FreakinDJ]

Coming Home: Appliance Maker Drops China to Produce in Texas

By TIMOTHY AEPPEL
HOUSTON -- Farouk Shami, a Palestinian-born hairdresser who built a $1 billion manufacturing company around a popular line of hair irons, is moving all of his production of hand-held appliances from China to a sprawling new factory here.

The move flies in the face of conventional wisdom, which says gadgets like this are best made in a low-cost country. But, he says, outsourcing has led to a loss of control over manufacturing and distribution.

"We'll make more money this way -- because we'll have better quality and a better image," says the 66-year-old, who says his company, Farouk Systems Inc., spends about $500,000 a month fighting counterfeits, most of which he says originate in China. The company collects the fake products and tracks the source, and then brings action in China to shut down illegal producers

Mr. Shami figures having production under his nose will help him control quality and inventory, and also fight the fakes, since imported irons will automatically be suspect. He sells in 104 countries, but the U.S. represents over 60% of the company's sales

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125107636394652753.html

Just mind boggeling having to spend $500,000 a Month to ward off your business being destroyed by Chinese Knock Offs.

Makes one wonder what would happen if the US placed Tarrifs to cover the cost of these US businesses legally enforcing patent rights, intelectual property rights and copyrights, of their products.

You just know the minute the Chinese government lost even $.01 cent of the VAT tax they place on all items manufactured in Chine they would heard 30 or 40 of the factories workers out into a feild for a public execution

[seabeyond]

1. good. i am damn tired of getting crap. i will spend more for better. hope a trend. nt

[charlie]

6. It is a trend

How big, I don't know, but it's happening. I was reading not too long ago about manufacturers relocating to the NC/SC area for better quality control and worker reliability. You know who they were? Chinese.

[seabeyond]

7. wow. huh. we went on a trip from texas to cape cod. we were really surprised

by the industry in north carolina particularly.

[Obamanaut]

2. This is a good thing. I can give it a rec. nt

[zbdent]

3. Isn't it the mantra that we can't put tariffs on furren goods?

I mean, all the "raw materials" producers who profit from the trade would lose the business, and all the goods that come back, made from those "raw materials", would reflect the tariffs?

You know, away from the days when the raw materials were produced here and made into products/goods here also?

[FreakinDJ]

4. You mean back when we had a "Sustainable Economy?

[zbdent]

5. Or as Thom Hartmann points out ...

wealth is not made by buying stuff ... it is made by producing stuff ...