HANOVER, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Gregg Buchbinder, CEO of Emeco Industries, Inc., will tell attendees at the “Brand-Maker Manifesto” event in Shanghai Nov. 8 that the problem with cheap Chinese imports to the United States is not manufacturers in China, but giant American companies and private equity firms that exploit plentiful cheap labor and materials in that country to reap short-term profits.
“I am an American entrepreneur who is succeeding in selling to China and has built a strong brand by marketing high quality products all over the world,” said Buchbinder. “The Emeco brand stands for quality, sustainability, iconic design, American jobs and products that have global appeal. “
“The problem is not small entrepreneurs like me,” Buchbinder added, “But big U.S. companies that are buying short-term results by manufacturing in China, eliminating good American jobs, and then selling inferior products to the American consumer.”
On Oct. 1, Emeco, which is based in Hanover, PA., sued giant retailer Restoration Hardware and its former CEO and current “Creator and Curator” Gary Friedman, for allegedly stealing the design of its iconic “Navy Chair®” and selling cheap, Chinese-made counterfeit versions of the chair. A hearing is scheduled in December for a preliminary injunction against Restoration Hardware. Restoration Hardware is expected to launch a $119-million initial public offering this week.
The New York Times recently published an article, “Once Again, Seeing Double,” about Emeco’s efforts to protect its world-renowned “Navy Chair®”. And in a recent video titled, “Why We’re Standing Up to Restoration Hardware,” Buchbinder explains how the survival of his company is at stake in the legal battle.
Emeco is on the leading edge of a movement in product development that promises a new, more intelligent and sustainable way of life. Producing up-cycled chairs and stools in collaboration with some of the world’s leading designers, architects, institutions, and respected global brands, Emeco and its partners share a commitment to a better, more beautiful future.
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