1. Is manufacturing dead or a leading indicator for the economy? Whenever the Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) from the Institute for Supply Management lands under 50, as it did last week, manufacturing naysayers proclaim the sector irrelevant or worse. This time around pundits are struggling to explain how manufacturing also seems to be a bellwether […]
Ten years ago, Coors’ stunning cut-and-run from Denver would have been analogous to Microsoft leaving Redmond, Apple leaving Silicon Valley, or Ford leaving Detroit. We’d have been left at a loss for words. Today, things are different. Today, the move is no more than a final capitulation to a regional craft brewing industry that’s buried […]
Last month I acknowledged I’d been overly optimistic about the outdoor industry’s appetite to bring manufacturing back to the U.S. Just days later, Utah-based Black Diamond stunned employees by announcing 70 layoffs as part of plans to move manufacturing back offshore, reversing a decision made in 2015 to reshore manufacturing to Utah. Bad timing. As […]
President Trump’s import taxes have always been a tactic lacking a strategy. As such the possible outcomes are limited. If the goal is to end unfair and unreciprocated access to the U.S. market, tariffing the import of Chinese-made shoes, or European cars, is arguably an effective tool. But if the goal is also to encourage […]
In the run-up to CompanyWeek‘s six-year anniversary in September, I’m looking back at columns I wrote to see what I got right, and wrong, along the way. What I got right Manufacturing’s comeback: Announcing the launch of CompanyWeek in August 2013, I wrote, “Manufacturing’s at the center of profound change in the economy.” This past […]
To tour the new Ross Reels factory in Montrose is a bit surreal, as if you’re looking at something that’s not supposed to be there. So many voices have written off manufacturing, but here it is, one of Colorado’s finest new manufacturing facilities, on the stunning Uncompahgre River because, of course, they make world-class fly-fishing […]
Republished February 2, 2022, with strikethroughs. If tariffs COVID has accomplished anything, they’ve it’s brought into focus the manufacturing strategies of American companies and vulnerabilities of sourcing and manufacturing offshore. For American brands built on Chinese contract manufacturing, it’s a reminder that managing production operations offshore carries risk. For others it’s been an affirmation of […]
Nike’s first obligation is to shareholders, not politicians, so it’s no surprise it yanked the Besty Ross flag shoes to appease “talent” that speaks for a growing customer base. Colin Kaepernick has demonstrated he can move the sales needle for Nike. The political voices critical of Nike’s move haven’t. Not every business calculation pans out, […]
Many thought the national legalization of hemp cannabis in the 2018 Farm Bill would usher in a new era of collaboration and industry development. Since then, the news has been confusing to say the least, and for services providers, downright disappointing: States were asked to submit follow-up plans to the federal government, with approval providing […]
A common theme in business is that automation will continue to sap U.S. employment in manufacturing even as productivity rises. This week the New York Times‘ Louis Uchitelle surmised that “manufacturing is unlikely to be capable of producing a great deal of additional employment,” making the familiar argument: Modern assembly-line machinery continues to eliminate jobs. […]