Who is Made in America Guy?
About Greg Owens
I am the proud Co-Founder and CEO of Sherrill Manufacturing, the only manufacturer of stainless steel flatware (silverware) in the United States. Matt and I started the company in 2005 when we purchased the manufacturing plant formerly owned by Oneida Limited. My primary role in the company has been the development of the Liberty Tabletop brand. As part of this effort, I have been engaged with many organizations focused on creating a renaissance in American manufacturing. This ranges from website developers, social media experts, PR firms, manufacturing trade groups and trade organizations in Washington DC. The goal of "Made in America Man" is to share these experiences with others - stories of success, challenges faced, and also provide networking links so that they can join me and others in pushing forward the renaissance in American Manufacturing!
About Sherrill Manufacturing and Liberty Tabletop
Flatware manufacturing began in Sherrill, NY in the late 1800's, initiated by the iconic company Oneida, Ltd. Co-Founder Matt Roberts and I both worked for Oneida starting in the 1990's, up until the time when Oneida announced that they were closing the factory with all production to be shipped overseas to China, Vietnam and Indonesia. The community was devastated, we were devastated, and something needed to be done. So, we bought the factory - all of the equipment, land and buildings. After several years working as a captive manufacturer of our predecessor, things stated to fall apart and Sherrill split from Oneida, our primary customer. This is about the time Liberty Tabletop, our own brand, was launched. Our short history confirmed what we and everyone knew, that we could not compete head on head with China. The stainless steel subsidies, cheap labor, lack of environmental regulations etc... were insurmountable. What we could do, however, was create a new brand, Liberty Tabletop, that would be the ONLY flatware manufacturer in the United States. With in this unique niche, American made products are sought after by millions of Americans, we developed a direct to customer business model in order to keep our pricing in line with what customers could find in traditional retail stores. 12 years on we are growing and expanding our business to include not only our flatware, but other kitchen and tabletop items - all Made in America.