stop buying products made in china

I want to see a law that all items have to have the country of origin on the price tag. Not on the box, but on the price tag so you can see it clearly as you comparison shop.

ON THE PRICE TAG!

We needed a space heater a few weeks ago as our furnace needed to be repaired and it was COLD out. Without thinking, I sent my partner to Target to buy one, and it was days later before I realized it was probably made in China. I just got around to checking, and sure enough it was.

I’m not going to worry about it. We needed it, and we needed it right then. A cold snap came in, we turned on our furnace for the first time this year, and it didn’t work. The alternative would have been paying a premium for a repair person to come on the weekend. This space heater will also help us use less energy all winter as we keep the house quite cool, and a space heater will make that more bearable.

So, count that as one mess-up.

I am trying to go China free and so far so good. Spending a lot less money on stuff I don’t really need. Do you have suggestions on how to find the things you need and not purchase from China? Thanks, Sans_China

My boyfriend needed to get a gift yesterday, and the closest thing on the way was Pier One. I didn’t think there was any way he’d find something not made in China, but he did. I also picked up a few candles. This isn’t the kind of place where I want to put my money, so next time we’ll plan ahead better and go to a local shop or order from a fair trade catalog, but at least I didn’t blow this particular goal.

I emailed customer service for Born last week to see where the new boots I wanted were made. They never got back to me. I’ll find something else.

I also went shopping this weekend. It was really something to amuse myself since I was already downtown for a haircut. Fortunately, the first thing I picked up was Made in China. I could’ve kept looking and found something else, but it was a reminder that I really didn’t need to be shopping in the first place.

Edited to add: In fairness, Born did contact me today. Replying on 9/8 to a 8/30 email is slow, but they did eventually reply. Unfortunately, the Persimmon boots are made in China, so I still need to keep looking.

I’m reading this book now, and would like to try this experiment, too. I’ve been working on it for awhile now, but will make today my official start date.

At first glance, this may be simple for me since I’m not someone who shops at Wal-Mart and fills a cart-load of crap each week. However, like most people I do have a few things on my shopping list. Before it gets cold out, I will need to buy a pair of flats and possibly a pair of boots. Last night, I emailed the manufacturer of the boots that I want to buy and asked them where the boots were made and the source of the components.

This kind of planning ahead will be necessary, and the side-benefit will be that it may curb any impulse purchases.

I’ve been on the bandwagon for about a month now. Not only do I feel it’s important to support USA-made goods, but I am appalled at the way the Chinese government torture and disrespect Tibetan citizens. Let me say that it’s been an eye-opening month. I really lived in la-la land when shopping before my boycott. My friends with kids are probably all mad at me, because I realized while shopping for a one-year old girl’s birthday that almost all toys are made by red hands! (From now on, the kids are all getting educational DVDs from me.) ;) This boycott is a great way to become a more informed consumer and ask yourself if you really ‘need’ that piece of junk jewelry or t-shirt before you just buy it because it’s cute.

just came back from IKEA and it struck me again how everything sold there – with a few exceptions – is made in china.
i knew this before, but somehow i’m increasingly getting the awful feeling that the only reason they can keep their good design/cheap prices is because they are manufactured in 3rd world countries/china.
with all the increase in life-expenses here in europe, it’s cheaper to buy stuff for your household than actual food. that cant be right, right? i mean, do we really need a rug for 2,- EUR, or a lamp for 1,50,-EUR if people have to work in poor conditions. and we arent even talking about the environmental issues… dunno, but it seems to me that there is something rotten in the state of svenska. i’m not saying IKEA is a total baddy, but they are at least partly responsible for this totally fucked up idea that stuff doesnt have to cost much; some things do. people have to get used to the idea that they cant refurbish their appartments every other month or buy new clothes every other day. the level and rate of consumerism has gotten totally out of control. my personal frustration is that when you do look for quality-stuff that lasts, you cant find it outside of the super-premium market. there’s no inbetween anymore…
sorry, just had to vent a little..
cheers,
bob

I’m going to let my photo speak for itself, but want to explain that I do not believe that China itself is to blame. The culprits are U.S. companies who demand low-priced goods (I use the word “good” loosely). Ask for crap, you get crap.

I became very frustrated today while in PetSmart trying to buy bedding, food bowls, and toys for two dogs I’m getting tomorrow. I couldn’t find a single toy or bedding product that was not made in China. The minute I got home I wrote a letter to PetSmart. I’ll be doing this every time I can’t find products I want. The stores can’t know how you feel if you don’t tell them.