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‘American-made’ is about quality, not cost

Brookville store working with other local businesses to excite consumers about products made in the U.S.

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By Doug Page, Staff Writer Updated 10:11 PM Tuesday, April 13, 2010

BROOKVILLE — In the basement of the All American Store are six, 20-foot gondolas piled high and deep with $20,000 of inventory that came with space the store leased in the strip mall on Wolf Creek Pike.

None of it will make the sales floor, Mike Petro said, because none of it is American made or assembled.

Petro, his partner Dennis Cunningham, and their investors are committed to the philosophy that selling American made or assembled goods will do more good for this country than any legislation or tax break.

“We think we’re rebuilding American one purchase at a time,” Petro said.

Finding the goods

The All American Store sits in a strip mall on the site of a former hardware store. “Made in America” labels can be found on paint, putty, hand tools, garden supplies, nails, work clothes and boots. But the normal selection of power tools can’t be found. Lonely on the shelf are two models of Milwaukee brand saws, the only power tools left that are made in America.

“Finding suppliers has been like putting together a puzzle,” Petro said. “Hose nozzles and circular saws have been the hardest to find.” Add to that bolts and screws. Petro and Cunningham are working on that.

What customers are likely to see, said Charles Gulas, a Wright State University marketing professor, is a smaller selection at higher prices.

All American’s Cunningham said prices might be 10 percent to 15 percent higher on some items, while competitive on others. Jeans run $20 to $30, a very competitive price. The Prison Blues line of dungarees are stitched together by inmates of the Oregon prison system, but styles are limited.

A hand-stitched leather and heavy canvas tool belt will cost upwards of $200, but comes with a lifetime warranty.

“Some people will be interested in the product and philosophy,” Gulas said. “But as retailer, you are facing a price barrier and selection barrier.” He noted goods manufactured in China will have a much lower price.

All American’s Petro said he hopes the consumer will look past price.

“For the last 30 years, it’s been all about price,” he said, “and look where it has gotten us.”

Getting help

American manufactures from Ames True Temper to a small drill bit maker in Montana are supporting the store.

Wilson Bohannan Lock in Marion has been making padlocks for 160 years. The 70-employee firm has a niche market of public utilities, but is helping a small retailer because the concept is “a wonderful idea,” said Craig Stone, the company’s vice president of sales. After a foray into “big box” retailing, the company decided it was too risky to deal with the big boys of retailing.

“This is a smaller scale retailing that we feel comfortable handling,” said Craig Stone, vice president of sales. “And it’s a wonderful idea.”

Stone said Wilson Bohannan just finished a one-of-kind point of sale display of its merchandise for the All American Store. It may be a far cry from the 1,000-lot orders the company regularly ships to utilities domestically and overseas, but the “onesies and twosies” sales to retail customers has the company excited. “It’s promoting American-made products, and that’s what we make,” Stone said.

Marvin Feldman, a longtime manufacturers representative for Ames True Temper, is another enthusiast. Seventy percent of the yard tools manufactured by Ames True Temper are American made or assembled.

“To me, the concept is the greatest thing since ice tea,” he said. “I grew up in Pittsburgh. There used to be 27 steel mills lined up from one end of town to the other. Where did all those jobs go?”

Feldman agrees with Cunningham and Petro that manufacturing jobs need to be retained and increased. And in hardware, Feldman believes the quality of domestic goods top that of those made abroad. And the prices are competitive.

“Let me tell you, at sales meeting the All American Store is what everyone is talking about,” he said.

One area hardware store manager agrees that the All American Store could grab a niche market.

“I get a lot of comments from my customers when they come in (saying) ‘Is this American made?’ especially from the pre-Baby Boomers. Most of them are pretty hard-core about ‘Made in America,’” said Gary Hendrickson, manager of the Tractor Supply Co. store in Beavercreek.

For others, though, convenience and service are more important.

“It’s all about customer service, how you take care of your customers,” Hendrickson said.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2290 or dpage@DaytonDailyNews.com.