5 Reasons to Buy American-Made

You may be wondering: what are the true benefits of buying goods that are made in America, and what kind of impact does it truly have on us here? Who really benefits? These are a few questions we all ask when it comes to whether or not we allow for the case of domestic or foreign-made products to be on our radar. Buying an American-made car is easier to understand. It’s ingrained in us from commercials and it’s a part of our culture. What about buying farm equipment that is American-made? Or coffee mugs? Or something as simple as ink pens? We’ve gathered some benefits that can shine a small light on these and other questions that arise from the made in the USA movement, whether you’re a manufacturer of a product looking to save on production costs by moving to a foreign production facility, or a consumer. We have put together our top 5 reasons to buy American-made.

American people spending American dollars on American products equals American jobs. These jobs are the foundation of a thriving economy. If every American spent an extra $3.33 on American-made products, it would create almost 10,000 new jobs. And, if every builder used just 5 percent more Made in the USA materials, it would create 220,000 jobs. This is the perfect example of how we truly can make a difference with action as small as buying products that have the wonderful “Made in USA” tag on them!

Each manufacturing job trusted to one American citizen creates jobs for an additional 5 to 8 Americans. According to the Manufacturing Institute, every dollar generated by American manufacturing provides an additional $1.48 to the US economy. So if we can help play a role in reclaiming American manufacturing, and reinvigorating the economy, then why wouldn’t we take action?

It has probably never even crossed your mind that many of the highways we drive on, the bridges we cross, and the construction of buildings on our nation’s skylines have been outsourced. Unfortunately, outsourcing our infrastructure is a real and present thing. This is a lesser-known epidemic against the quantity of fair-pay jobs for American workers. In fact, in 2011 a bridge being built in San Francisco was outsourced to China in an effort to save over $400 million. Imagine if that had stayed state-side. When we buy American-made goods we are investing in our nation’s and state economies so cost-saving measures like this aren’t as dire. And maybe we wouldn’t have to install windows made in China in the new World Trade Center building in New York.

We’re all familiar with the term “The value of a dollar,” right? Did you know that dividend tax rates in the U.S. rose from nearly 15% to as high as 43.4% in 2013. In China, dividend tax rates were set to fall from 10% to 5% that same year. A statistic like that makes you wonder where and what economy, an investor looking to make the most on the dollar will invest their money, doesn’t it? What if this trend continues and affects the USA exponentially for years or even decades to come? Don’t take the concept of a strong America for granted. Invest in our country each day by seeking out American-made products.

When you buy American-made products, the proceeds remain in the U.S. economy. The money you spend then pays the workers that directly or indirectly created the product you purchased. When workers spend their money here, and on goods made domestically, the dollars continue to be recycled. Every American worker also pays taxes on wages earned in America.