Thinking big: CompanyWeek launches in Texas

Eight years ago this fall, we launched CompanyWeek to report on Colorado’s over-performing manufacturing economy. Along the way, we added Utah and California editions of CompanyWeek Mfg. Reports.

Last week we opened a new chapter. With the launch of the TX Mfg. Report, we land in America’s most talked-about manufacturing ecosystem. A business-friendly reputation, access to labor, a rich R&D ecosystem, and a foundation of industrial acumen are combining to attract companies and entrepreneurs here. Texas assets are working like gravity to tug manufacturing companies into the state.

And people. I recently moved from Colorado to Texas.

Location matters, but then again, it doesn’t. The folks reimagining U.S. manufacturing share a bond that often transcends state lines.

Randy Bloomer thought he could build a better horse trailer. And did. Eric Wallace and his pals couldn’t stomach American beer. So he launched Left Hand Brewing and a craft beer revolution, along with others like Justin Gold, whose eponymous Justin’s Nut Butter helped change America’s staid food industry. Tony and Terry Pearce watched traditional mattress companies gouge consumers and launched Purple — from Utah.

Job shops operating in Tesla’s supply chain, like Hale Foote’s Scandic, are as transformational and agile as their OEM, as are Heather Bulk’s Special Aerospace Services and Pamela Kan’s Bishop-Wisecarver. Innovation is rampant. Entrepreneurial acumen is off the charts.

They’ve also all been featured in CompanyWeek. We write about manufacturers. And manufacturers are our readers. We’ve profiled more than 1,600 companies to date and over 15,000 comprise our region-wide readership.

We’ll profile three or four companies in every edition of the TX Mfg. Report, and do so twice a month to begin, and every week sometime in 2022. If Texas manufacturing is informed by people like Randy Bloomer, our success is guaranteed.

More, we’ll showcase manufacturers to each other across our publishing footprint, and use our SCoP supply-chain portal to connect companies with each other. Across the West. If your company can’t find a fabricator or producer across town, we may be able to help you locate one in your state, or the region. Either way, let’s keep that job in the U.S.

So buckle up and come along with us as we tell the story of Texas manufacturing through the companies and people leading it today. From California to Utah to Colorado to Texas, our reporting is showcasing the front lines of American manufacturing.

As in all our markets, if you’re a Texas-based company reading this for the first time, have your company featured — there are NO FEES. Or sponsor and advertise your brand. Manufacturers need your services.

Email me for more information.

Bart Taylor is founder and publisher of CompanyWeek. Reach him at btaylor@companyweek.com.