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Famous American Brand Names that are not American

Matt555

Matt555

Doc4 said:
... which of course had its origins in Europe centuries before anyone got his pilgrim shoes wet at Plymouth Rock. :blink:
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Haha.....okay....I am going to stop talking now. I am afraid I am beginning to look like "that" American.
 
T

tango68

If you wan to split hairs you could say that most companies are not truely american (in the strict sense that they buy from, manufacture in or are owned by companies that are outside us soil). Ford manufactures a lot of cars in mexico and canada, as do most of the motor companies while honda (traditionaly thought of as japanese) has several plants in the US. Technically Budweiser is traditionally american. Its only recently that they were bought out by inbev ( a dutch company by origin and one of the worlds largest)
 
bakerbarber

bakerbarber

Yes it does.

The point though isn't who isn't American based or owned.

The part of this subject that is meaningful to me is the companies such as Budweiser who are not American owned, but continue to leverage the idea that they are in their advertising.

It is misleading and takes advantage of a group of people who believe they are supporting a domestic manufacturer when they are not.

Budweiser is still brewed and distributed in the US, but the profits gained from whatever percentage of consumers who make their purchase based in any part on a belief that it is an American company are ill gotten.

Those profits also, most likely, leave the country.

The first thing they did after selling out to Im-Bev was to roll out a product called, "American Lager."

Intentional play on words and big spin for brand perception.

I see nothing wrong with international corporations selling there goods here. It's the lies by omission that are insulating.

Where a company is based affects much more than tax base.
Being immersed in your market and in touch with your demographic is essential.

Decisions affecting quality and wholesome-ness are skewed by cultural differences around the world.

Leveraging a brands heritage and time tested reputation for profit from an absentee controlling body is unethical. Plus what may have been a dead center focus regarding quality and detail to original formulas may end on the sidelines now that the once stoic brand is now just another name in a portfolio.

Currency exchanges alone can drastically affect the profitability of one company over another. If you are strictly a domestic company buying and selling in dollars, you are not able to take advantage of exchange rate gains when accounting P/L on the books.

I like Tsing Tao, but they never claimed to be American.

The companies who feel the need to enact nondisclosure regarding ownership are the ones that bother me.

If I want to buy American, it shouldn't require a Google search prior to going shopping.
 
Kentos

Kentos

B&B's Dr. Doolittle.
Staff member
By that same token Walmart is majority American owned but sell 90% foreign products. What is worse, Budweiser or Walmart? In today's global economy the lines are blurring and who knows really where that dollar goes? To be fair the money multiplier effect is still really valuable, so by spending your money IN the USA, you are at least helping out.
 
Agravic

Agravic

Kentos said:
By that same token Walmart is majority American owned but sell 90% foreign products. What is worse, Budweiser or Walmart? In today's global economy the lines are blurring and who knows really where that dollar goes? To be fair the money multiplier effect is still really valuable, so by spending your money IN the USA, you are at least helping out.
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+1. I was just thinking the same regarding WalMart as I read through this thread ... sigh ... purveyors of outsourced cheap products ... sigh ... :thumbdown
 
gaseousclay

gaseousclay

just look at the sunglasses industry. Luxottica (Italy) owns a lot of former US sunglasses companies like Oakley, Ray-Ban, Mosley Tribes, etc.
 
Doc4

Doc4

Stumpy in cold weather
Staff member
bakerbarber said:
The part of this subject that is meaningful to me is the companies such as Budweiser who are not American owned, but continue to leverage the idea that they are in their advertising.

It is misleading and takes advantage of a group of people who believe they are supporting a domestic manufacturer when they are not.

Budweiser is still brewed and distributed in the US, but the profits gained from whatever percentage of consumers who make their purchase based in any part on a belief that it is an American company are ill gotten.

Those profits also, most likely, leave the country.
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Well, ultimately the 'profits' are what's paid to the stockholders, so once any company "goes public" with its stock the profit can go anywhere. If Americans bought up the stock of the European company that owns Budweiser ... the profits go to Americans.

I suspect that for most people it's a far more important issue where the products are made ... would people rather buy a Toyota Sienna made in Kentucky, or a Dodge Caravan made in Mexico? I also agree that there is at least an impression, and perhaps a likelihood, that "local" company management (I won't call them "owners" as that invites the whole "what about the shareholders?" thing) is more likely to be in tune with local/national interests and sensibilities ... more likely to "give a darn" about maintaining a long established and hard-won reputation for quality and service ... but there's plenty of examples of American capitalists who don't care about those things.

In terms of "keeping our money here", it's probably far more important where the factories and workers are.

Leveraging a brands heritage and time tested reputation for profit from an absentee controlling body is unethical. Plus what may have been a dead center focus regarding quality and detail to original formulas may end on the sidelines now that the once stoic brand is now just another name in a portfolio.
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If you take the "foreign ownership" aspect out of this, does that change your objection to leveraging a brand's heritage, and sidelining quality/originality when the brand gets submerged in a portfolio? The exact same thing could happen if an "all american" company is bought out by a big American conglomerate.

I like Tsing Tao, but they never claimed to be American.
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Odds are, the Tsing Tao beer you can buy in the US is made in the US under licence from Tsing Tao ... just like the "american" beer we can buy in Canada is brewed by Canadian breweries under licence.

Kentos said:
By that same token Walmart is majority American owned but sell 90% foreign products. What is worse, Budweiser or Walmart? In today's global economy the lines are blurring and who knows really where that dollar goes? To be fair the money multiplier effect is still really valuable, so by spending your money IN the USA, you are at least helping out.
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Agravic said:
+1. I was just thinking the same regarding WalMart as I read through this thread ... sigh ... purveyors of outsourced cheap products ... sigh ... :thumbdown
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... but if all the Americans who shop at Walmart stop ... and instead buy stuff made in America by Americans ... Walmart closes.

Just sayin'.
 
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