Buy American :)

What we as consumers spend on foreign-made products is staggering, especially as only a few decades ago nearly everything was American-made.  Last week, a customer of ours came in and mentioned that they had read an article that stated that if we each spent $60 a year on American-made products, nearly 200,000 jobs would be created in this country.  It seems shocking that such a relatively small amount could have that impact, but after doing a quick search online, I found this article from 2011 to back it up: http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/business/2011/11/made-in-america-creating-jobs-for-christmas/.  Okay, so technically, we need to spend $64 (which since this article is over a year old means we probably have to spend more like $65 now), but still, it isn't a lot, yet it goes a long way.  Since we opened back in 2009, we've carried many made in America lines, some of which have become well-known like Green Toys, who were recently celebrated by Chase bank as an innovative "Main Street" entrepreneur.  Others are still relatively unknown lines for many people, like Crazy Aaron's Thinking Putty, Channel Craft, and Maple Landmark.  The prices for these products may be slightly higher than their made in China counterparts, but the benefit to our country's economy it is more than worth the few extra dollars spent.  Take into consideration our custom yo-yo from Maple Landmark, shown above.  Made in Vermont by people paid a decent wage in good working conditions, these yo-yos are also engraved with our logo, which we think is pretty dandy.  And it retails for $5.95.  $5.95! For a super awesome classic toy that you can't get anywhere else.  So consider buying something made in America next time you're at Landis' Labyrinth!