Toy Maker Revs Up Effort to Bring Production Jobs Home

Redman & Associates, a toy-making company based in Bentonville, announced earlier this month it will open a manufacturing and distribution center in Rogers.

The company has devised a three-year plan to move all production of its popular Disney and Marvel ride-on toys, sold exclusively at Walmart, from a plant in China to the Rogers facility, founder and CEO Mel Redman said.

The hiring process will begin in January. Redman will initially take on about 20 employees whose average wage will be $18 per hour, with a goal of producing 100,000 toys between late spring and the end of 2014, Redman said.

Redman plans to steadily ramp up production and increase staff throughout the three years. By 2016, the facility will employ at least 74 people, he said.

In partnership with Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Redman’s former employer, and with support from the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, Redman said he hopes to start a wave in the manufacturing community of suppliers making more products in the United States and, specifically, in Arkansas.

Redman said his plan has been in the works for about a year and a half, but he was spurred into action after attending a recent Walmart summit that emphasized the retail giant’s promise to spend an additional $50 billion on American-made goods during the next 10 years.

Bill Simon, president and CEO of Wal-Mart Stores Inc.’s U.S. division, said the goal is easily attainable, and that two-thirds of the products sold in Walmart stores are already grown or made in the U.S.

Simon and Gov. Mike Beebe were among those who showed support for the new facility during a press conference Oct. 7 at the John Q. Hammons Center in Rogers.

“I’ve always said a country can’t be truly great if you don’t make stuff,” Beebe said.

The governor said he hopes the endeavor will start a trend.

“We are just glad to be a part of it,” Simon said. “This is not only bringing back jobs, it’s bringing back opportunity.”

Since the summit, several other Walmart vendors have announced relocation of operations to America.

“We are just getting started. We will have several announcements in the coming months,” Simon said.

In addition to being beneficial to the local economy, to Redman, relocating to the U.S. just makes sense right now.

The window for outsourcing cheap labor is closing.

Energy costs are rising in China, and the gap in wages between American workers and those overseas is shrinking.

Chinese workers are being paid more “rightfully so,” Redman added.

In Redman’s mind, now is the time to start moving manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. “We need to put people here back to work.”

Under its current operation strategy, Redman ships its finished products from China to Long Beach, Calif., for distribution.

However, with the new facility, Redman will be able to distribute and manufacture at the same location and save shipping costs because it will be more centrally located, allowing for easier access to stores throughout the country.

Redman said a study conducted for the company indicated this would save 2.2 million inland freight miles.

This, combined with the reduction of ocean freight from China, will take a big chunk out of the company’s logistics costs, which total about $7 million a year.

Redman said he will use the savings to fund the new facility, which will be housed in an existing 275,000-SF building, located at 1300 N. Dixieland Road.

Redman looked at several Arkansas locations and one in Oklahoma for potential venues for the plant, but he said the Rogers location was the perfect size and had the necessary features, including 36-foot-high ceilings and 24 loading docks.

The lease has been signed, with Redman agreeing to pay $6.5 million out-of-pocket for the space. Redman also plans to relocate its headquarters to the new facility by the end of the year.

In addition to the six-volt, battery-powered ride-on toys that will now be made in the Rogers facility, Redman makes 12-volt, motorized “ride-in” toys for stores including Walmart and Sam’s Club, under its own brand name, Monster Trax.

These toys will still be made in China for the time being, Redman said.

The company, however, has already started making toys in Arkansas on a smaller scale out of its Bentonville office.