LINDEN, N.J. – The west coast lighting retailer Lamps Plus has struck an exclusive deal to market classic Stiffel Lamps, a brand that has returned production to the U.S. recent years. “Stiffel is a brand with a great history. The lamps are truly unique and considered works of art,” saidMORE HERE
INDIANAPOLIS – There are many who swear by Bar Keeper’s Friend. It’s a safe type of abrasive, based on plants. Bar Keeper’s Friend is great for cleaning copper-bottomed kitchen pans. Its main ingredient is oxalic acid; its distinctive scent just smells like cleanliness. Its mild abrasives clean everything from fiberglassMORE HERE
The quintessential product advertising was Tang, but there were other products that hitched onto Apollo and NASA, even though NASA did not have a specific promotional program.MORE HERE
There is a large amount of room in the marketplace for small, regional, handcrafted fashion and craft brands. One of the many surviving leather companies is J.W. Hulme of St. Paul, Minnesota. They make excellent leather goods, including bags, briefcases and wallets; it’s a luxury approach with a simpler, less fashionMORE HERE
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI – Large consumer products companies like Proctor & Gamble and Colgate Palmolive have sometimes complicated the sale of household products. Endless product line extensions and umpteen variations on products have confused consumers who like the product as it was. Most recently, the trend has been the mixingMORE HERE
Got to love the funny little American brand names that serve small product niches. With these brands, the product markets are small, and so is the competition. Little advertising is needed, and is mostly word of mouth. One such niche is the category of brands that solve unique problems; inMORE HERE
Recently, Coleman brought back its original steel cooler. It’s sold as an exclusive for the 50th anniversary of the sporting goods supply company Cabela’s. It’s part of a trend of retro products, reintroduced as specialty products for particular retailers, similar to Fisher-Price toys sold at Cracker Barrel and vintage TideMORE HERE
This vintage flour sifter was made by the cooking utensil brand Androck. Androck products were made by the Washburn Company, which was founded in the 19th century in Massachusetts. Androck was a brand for all sorts of colorful and cool kitchen items. Well-made and amusingly designed, their products are stillMORE HERE
Editor’s Note: As of 2023, we could find no American toothpicks left either made in Maine, or anywhere else. Please let us know in comments if one knows of a new manufacturer. WEST PARIS, MAINE – There is something very American about toothpicks, and a great, American-made brand is Penley.MORE HERE
BLOSSOM, TEXAS – We hear from fans of the Peanut Rounder. It’s “soft and delicious” soft textured peanut candy made by Anderson Candy Company. Blossom is in Lamar County, in the northern part of the state. The company apparently has its roots in the 1940s, when a fellow named DanMORE HERE