i need your help!
hi friends!a quick interlude from regular posts here to ask you a question:
do you all have any advice on how to find a product manufacturer in the USA?
i'm thinking about trying to turn some of my patterns into shower curtains (how fun would that be??), and i have no idea how to find a manufacturer-- google searches just lead to those confusing sites like alibaba and globalsources, and they're all in china anyway.
if i manufacture something, i want it to be in the good ol' US of A, especially in a time like we're in, when we're losing so many jobs because they're being shipped overseas!
if you have any insights into how to go about this, i would be *forever* grateful.
thanks!
6 comments:
The Thomas Register Directory: http://www.thomasnet.com/
Also visit your public library for the Manufacturer Directory for your state.
Good luck in your search.
Would you be printing the fabric here, too? I asked around to find a small outfit to make a product, too and didn't find a definitive answer. The fabric minimums might dictate how much product you will need to make. Many fabric manufacturers probably know of cutting and sewing facilities and can possibly help you. Shower curtains are not a complicated project- straight hems and some eyelets. It's the fabric width you'll have to contend with- finding a printer who can do the really wide goods.
(shower curtains would be cool!)
try spoonflower.com or ponoko.com
If your considering vinyl, that may just need to be screen printed ... like a T-shirt or wall paper - try Martha Stewart or PBS - i've seen episodes showing how it's done on TV ... and there is a new home machine called Yudu.
Oil cloth is another idea - that is fabric that has a plastic coating ... there are directions on how to do this yourself on the Liquid Polymer Clay websites and books, so maybe there are businesses looking for customers and willing to try something new.
As an Accountant, I hope you will consider the wisdom of "just in time" manufacturing ... not keeping a large stock of supplies or finished product on the shelves ... it ties up capital and restricts options ... "lean and mean" doesn't have to translate to "skinny and nasty" ... instead "flexible and medium" - ready to dance, bob and weave !
I dont' have any direct knowledge, but I know Sommer designs has her stuf made in orange county:
http://www.youtube.com/user/DepressionCooking
shoot - wrong URL!
http://sommerdesigns.typepad.com/sommer_designs/
I have often wondered the same thing. It seems like finding your own sewers may be the best route to go if you want to make simple projects like shower curtains in small numbers. You could probably find sewers on craigslist. I vaguely remember that the back of quilting magazines may have listings for "cottage" sewers.
Good luck! I love your new coasters...
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