What Causes Businesses to Outsource?

T.G.I.F.!!! I am so glad the weekend is almost here, so I can relax and enjoy it. I’m going to watch the new movie Sinister Saturday, then on Sunday I’m going to lunch with my sister and her family and my dad and step-mom for a belated birthday lunch for my dad. Then I get to go have dinner with some classmates and my instructor, Jack Mierop from my speech 105 class. I might throw in a little homework, but fortunately I finally caught up thanks to staying up until 6am Wednesday. Amazing how much work you can get done without distractions, but man does time go by slow. LOL!

I recently was reading an article online about how generation X and some early generation Y individuals have started their own businesses to provide clothing to fit their style. The theme was title Hipster and the interesting point that was made was that these companies with smaller businesses are what will allow for jobs to remain in America and merchandise to be labeled “Made in the USA”. It’s no secret that major corporations have been outsourcing jobs to other countries, however, who is the driving force behind this dilemma?

I’ve had some interesting discussions with people about this over the past couple of years and many argue that corporate greed is why jobs are being outsourced, so the executives can get larger salaries and/or bonuses. Is that really the case? Or are consumers to blame for this increasing trend? The cost to employ your average American worker is significantly higher; as a result the cost of producing a product would increase significantly. Now the manufacturer needs to sell it at a price that will pay for his overhead (utilities, employee salaries, benefits, workman’s comp insurance, etc.) and allow for some profit. Taking this into consideration and knowing the store who will be selling the product to consumers needs to do the same, this means the cost of the product would increase and the question that I always ask is, would you pay $10 for a piece of clothing or electronic or $20 to $30? Most respond with $10, which is why in my opinion it is the consumer who determines where a product is made, not solely corporate greed.

Until next time!

Joey McIntosh

“Shopping is both a necessity and entertainment so while consumers may have less money to spend, that doesn’t necessarily affect their enjoyment of the shopping experience. What is fundamentally different is where consumers shop and their shopping mindset.”