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The Tip is 'Teach Grandchildren' One day, while I was on the Made In America Secrets site my granddaughter noticed and asked me what I was doing. I told her about the Big Secret and as I explained, she began to ask me more questions. After several minutes she left my office to play with her little sister. Months had gone by and until recently, I had forgotten about that moment. She was visiting again and I was talking to her about buying a custom printed T-Shirt. She immediately told me about a website that I could use to buy one. Wow I thought, she is only eight years old and already teaching me. The most amazing thing then happened, she said "Pops they sell Made In America T-Shirts". Thanks to her I purchased six custom Made In USA T-Shirts. Her name is Britton, she understands the Big Secret and I love it when she tells me her Little Secrets! Now she is ten and writing a screenplay called Mertastic. It is a story about a mermaid. Recently, she was visiting our house again and using my computer. She called me to come into my office and of course I came to her because that is what grandparents love to do. One of the reasons I love to be with her is because it is always interesting to see what she is up to. This time, she needed a mermaid tail for her movie, so we began to look around using Google. Her mother is a talented seamstress and will make the tail so we were looking for fabric that would be satisfy my granddaughter's vision of her mermaid tail. Once again we began to talk about Made in America and therefore started to investigate the country of origin of the fabrics she was considering. Because of that experience Made in USA fabric is now one of Made in America Secrets products. Thank you, Britton. Buying Tip Continued - Read more on Made in America Products by Gateway Shoes Shoes have been manufactured in our town for over 30 years. Back in the 70s, our town had over one hundred people making shoes for retailers all over the US. But times changed and most of the shoe industry outsourced to China for lower prices. Gateway decided that it was more important to keep a factory open and find a way. We found industries that need a dedicated stock of similar shoes in many sizes. We make the best quality for each of their needs and provide stocks of shoes for them to use in their peak seasons. We strive to be the best supplier for every customer. While today we have about twenty craftsmen and women, they have experience in years that number in the hundred. We specialize in one of only a few ways to attach the sole to shoe (upper). It is called direct attached injection molding. We consider ourselves experts in this efficient process. We buy materials from vendors in the USA and all over the world. Quality and value drive our vendor relationships. Each shoe factory job is believed to affect at least 7 other jobs in the community. We believe in our community and our country. WE RECYCLE!! That has been a key part of how we have persevered as the rest of our competitors moved offshore. We like to call it repurposing of other industry's production. We are always looking for new ways to further reduce our footprint. But we can say this, buying goods made at Gateway Shoes wins the shipping carbon load competition with China. We operate a clean and safe factory and also have an office in St. Louis for administration. Our history is really about our people. They cut, sew, stamp, string, last, trim, clean, lace, bag, and box. Buy some shoes, ask your friends if they know about Gateway Shoes , start a discussion about Made in the USA for your wedding or next big formal event. Ask for Gateway Shoes at your tuxedo store or bridal shop. |
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