Hispanic Small Business Owner Reverses Manufacturing Trend
.
As a descendant of Colombian immigrants
As a descendant of Colombian immigrants I came to a realization when I looked at their most revered export; coffee.
I thought, does great coffee only come from Colombia?
No, I’ve had great coffee from around the world and coffee was discovered in Ethiopia in the 11th century. This is when I then decided to seek out a facility in the United States that was certified and approved by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA), that followed International Standardization Organization (ISO) criteria and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP).
Trust in the production process was the deciding factor. I could only move forward if I could stand behind the new brand with the level of confidence we wanted for our customers.
Athlon Rub- All Sport Rub, Thai Oi Formula made in the USA
By owning and controlling the entire production process, I can ensure that is a quality sport rub produced and maintained in proper conditions. I now operate without communication challenges, stays on my on time zone, and have zero importation issues because of sourcing domestically.
We now have the confidence to seek the prestigious Informed Choice’s Banned Substance-Free Seal on all production batches. We ensure Athlon Rub’s formula is only from naturally derived ingredients and that the container is BPA-free. Before I could never even contemplate paying for certification of every production batch.
The decision to produce domestically was not as difficult as one would imagine when the challenges of international business and cultural differences leave their mark, price is not always the sole deciding factor.
I would still keep an open mind on producing abroad again depending on the product as certain products are more sensitive than others and depending on the relationship and control we have in the quality controls. With that said, our new vision involves exporting versus importing.
We feel the PRO’s far outweigh the CONS with the confidence we have in the product we make, the business relationships we have with our partners, and the fact that we are supporting our local economy by producing domestically.
This article was created to demonstrate how small businesses can bring back manufacturing to the US. Latin Business Today has not tested and therefore cannot endorse the product claims.
Related articles:
Thinking Of A Opening Cross Border Business?
