[jsjones]

All our stores are full of items that the cost of labor is very small in proportion to the cost of the item. Examples are injection molded pieces. Now instead of making these parts in the US they are made in China. In essence these jobs that used to be local are now farmed out overseas. My idea is realtively simple. Most of the cost of these imported items comes from shipping, insurance, wharehouse expenses, finance costs of products in a long pipeline and several steps of handling. The items coming from the plant are not significantly different in cost no matter where they are made. My idea involves drastically cutting down the shipping, insurance, financing costs of unsold goods by making the parts as close to the distribution points as possible and to have just in time delivery of items. There is also quick response to orders component that also cuts costs by keeping the pipeline as spare as possible and being more responsive to market conditions. By doing this I think the cost of American made products becomes more competitive as well as improved response times to demand. The business doesn't require any manufacturing just "procurement" from the many plastics manufactuing plants around the country. It also lends itself to starting off slowly with only a few items and expanding from there. Good Luck

Reward: Put someone to work!