Most Footwear Makers Moved Abroad, But Thorogood is Building a Bigger U.S. Factory

"Our commitment to Made in the USA is very strong," said Jeff Burns, president of Thorogood. "It is the heart and soul of the company, and we put our money where our mouth is." Photos courtesy Thorogood

The legendary boot manufacturer, a favorite of blue collar workers, operates three factories in Wisconsin. It already refurbished one facility, and is now building a new factory to expand its production capabilities.

The men and women building the new Thorogood boot factory in Marshfield, Wisconsin, are the exact sort of potential customer the long-time footwear manufacturer wants to reach.

After all, pipefitters, electricians, plumbers, and others in the building trades need comfortable, sturdy, long-lasting work boots while on the job, and the Thorogood brand has been providing high-quality, American-made footwear to hard-working tradespeople and factory workers since 1917.

Now Thorogood is growing its U.S. manufacturing footprint, with a new, $14.5 million, 70,000 square-foot factory build in Marshfield, which will replace a facility that was constructed in 1935.

"We are spending millions of dollars to remain at the forefront of Made in the USA, where a lot of companies, if they even have any factories left, they are still shutting them down," said Jeff Burns, president of Thorogood.

Thorogood has three manufacturing plants in Wisconsin: one in Marshfield, and two in the small city of Merrill, where the company's headquarters is located. The footwear maker has become a major employer in north-central Wisconsin, employing 400 people at its factories, with each of the three locations hosting about 130 workers.

"We moved into a refurbished, 142,000 square foot building in Merrill about two years ago and we were able to increase our production and capacity, and it allows us to grow," Burns said. "The new building construction getting underway in Marshfield will allow us to expand our welt production and hire another 30 to 40 employees."

A rendering of the new Thorogood factory in Marshfield, Wis., which is currently under construction.

The skilled craftspeople making boots at Thorogood factories are members of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) union, Locals 688 and 717. And further reaffirming its commitment to union labor, Thorogood has hired a majority of union workers to build the new Marshfield factory.

"We've had a really good and open relationship with unions and when we went to a general contractor to build the building and the bids were put out, all of the unions shops bid on those jobs, and we have 80% of those jobs that went to union labor," Burns said. "All of the electrical, which is over a million-dollar bid, we awarded to union shops."

Thorogood did a study of the company's demographics and learned that its customers are mostly aged 25 to 40, blue collar workers, who have a trade school or less than college education but are medium-to-high income. The company offers more than 100 distinctive styles of work footwear, from the popular stitched moccasin style to a full range of products that are job fitted for anyone from iron workers to pipefitters.

"It's not just like a general work boot, it's specific to the job," Burns said. "We have some boots for lighter work, and they are lighter and more flexible, but we also have heavy duty boots if you work in an oil refinery or need a heavy-duty constructed boot.

"The light work boot may have polyurethane bottoms that are really comfortable but other boots may have a rubber outer sole that is good for high heat and is abrasive resistant because you are working in a really tough environment."

Thorogood boots are manufactured with different constructions, depending on customer needs.

"We do three different types of construction - a welt construction where we stitch down the soles, we do cement which is you take the outer sole and cement it on the upper and we do injection which is a big machine that you put the upper in and robotically it injects a sole unit onto the application," Burns said. "So, our boots have three different types of construction.

"Welt construction is an old-time construction that offers good support, stability and it is just an iconic look and not a whole lot of factories do that, and we are kind of known for that welted look."

Burns noted that American-made shoe and boot makers such as Red Wing or Allen Edmonds have been to the Thorogood factories and that he has been to their facilities.

"We have a good relationship with them. I think the healthier the Made in USA program is, the better for all of us," Burns said.

Thorogood does import a small percentage of its shoe-building materials to reach a certain price level, but 85% of its materials, including its leather uppers, are all sourced in the United States.

"We do import some to get to price points in a category like law enforcement, which is a very price sensitive market," Burns said. "But our commitment to Made in the USA is very strong. It is the heart and soul of the company, and we put our money where our mouth is.

"We are still using the American leathers we used 50 years ago. We are not bringing in leathers from South America or China. The best leathers in the world are made right here in the United States."

Thorogood sells its boots through its dealers, whether storefront locations or online. The company does not sell direct to consumer, but can be found on many of the major shoe brand websites like Zappos and Boot Barn. Thorogood also has a presence on the Amazon platform.

"We do not sell direct to consumer because we want to support the retailers and we want them to support us," Burns said. "We are not in competition with our dealers, or our retailers and we just don't feel like it is in our best interest to compete with the people who are promoting our product. Why would we want to compete against them? We want to support them, and it works well for us."

Thorogood's commitment to American manufacturing includes outreach to the community. Just this week, 100 high school kids took the "Heavy Metal Tour" of the Thorogood factory, introducing the students to Thorogood products and giving them a glimpse of the manufacturing world.

Finding skilled labor is critical for American manufacturers, and Thorogood hopes some of these teenagers will become future manufacturing employees, be it for the shoe company or another factory.

Burns knows the importance of American manufacturing, as Thorogood has faced intense competition from poorly made Chinese products during the past 25 years.

"There is a company out there called Sureway, and they took a couple of our styles and knocked them off stitch for stitch, and they are selling them for $120 to $130," Burns said. "You can tell they are not going to fit; the soles are not good quality, the leather is cheap Chinese leather, and the tag on the boot has a U.S. flag and says USA. It is a flagrant violation of the law and it's insulting to the consumer.

"We make a great product so people say they can see spending an extra $50 because the quality is there and feel good about it being Made in the USA."

You can find the many different styles of Thorogood boots on the company's website. Find one you like and you will be directed to a retailer for purchasing.

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