Why “Made in the U.S.A.” will never go out of style

As much as I love the barbecues, picnics, and fireworks that have become synonymous with July 4^th—and believe, me, I do—as I grow older, I always try to find time to pause and reflect on what the holiday really means. And as the president of a family business that was built on three generations of American ingenuity, I’m reminded of the reasons why I’ve chosen to continue a family tradition of manufacturing Jelmar products in the U.S.A.

A generation or two ago, we were surrounded by products that were made in the United States. Your grandfather’s car? It’s a safe bet that it came from Detroit. Buying American was, well, the American way.

As many of Jelmar’s loyal customers are well aware, we’re proud of the fact that Jelmar products are made right here in the United States. In addition to keeping money circulating in our local communities and supporting U.S. jobs, manufacturing in the U.S. enables me to have greater control over quality. As a company president, I can tell you that nothing beats knowing that your longstanding customers are still getting the same caliber product that they did a few decades ago (or maybe even better!).

And while manufacturing in the U.S. might seem a little old-school to some, there’s another huge benefit that addresses a distinctly modern concern: I only need to transport my products hundreds of miles instead of thousands, significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Given the steps we’ve taken to produce “greenvenient” reformulations of CLR^® products, it’d be pretty silly—not to mention hypocritical—if we undid all those efforts in shipping.

Attention to quality, caring for the planet, supporting local economies—these are actions anyone (young or old) can get behind. And for Jelmar’s products, they go hand in hand with being American-made, on July 4^th and every day of the year.