New Balance hosted a visit by U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk on Thursday at the company’s Norridgewock, MEfactory. Ambassador Kirk toured the facility to learn about New Balance's production techniques with company President and CEO Rob DeMartini and Norridgewock Plant Manager Raye Wentworth. Kirk also met with New Balance associates to discuss footwear and American jobs in light of the ongoing negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
“I want to thank the people at New Balance for giving me the opportunity to visit their Norridgewock factory, and for their willingness to engage with USTR as we negotiate the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement. Our negotiators are working to get a strong deal for American workers and businesses, and we intend to negotiate a high-standard agreement that supports and retains American jobs,” says Ambassador Kirk.
“Making shoes in America is what we stand for at New Balance and today Ambassador Kirk had an opportunity to see our manufacturing firsthand,” says DeMartini. “We greatly appreciate the Ambassador’s willingness to travel to Maine and talk to the people that make our shoes. We are hopeful that the Ambassador will take with him what he learned today – that making shoes in America provides good jobs, supports our local communities and our nation, and needs to be preserved. As the free trade negotiations move forward, we will continue to advocate on behalf of our more than 1300 manufacturing associates and the 38 small businesses in the U.S. that supply our domestic manufacturing. We are encouraged by the Ambassador's visit and by his openness to hearing our perspective on this crucial matter of public policy, manufacturing and American jobs.”
Ambassador Kirk’s visit to New Balance’s Norridgewock facility was prompted by an invitation extended during a meeting with Kirk and New Balance associates during “Made in America Footwear Day” on Capitol Hill this past July.
In an interview with CNBC, DeMartini, said the tariff protects the 7 million pairs of shoes the company makes inside the U.S. each year. He said, “Vietnam which already imports a significant amount of shoes in the country would have an advantage up against those factories. It would be very difficult to keep them competitive.”
He noted that Vietnam is a government-subsidized industry in shoe making, adding, “All we're asking for is a fair, level playing field to compete on.”
The TPP agreement, which is currently under negotiation, would include 11 nations, including Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, New Zealand, Peru, Malaysai, Mexico, Singapore and Vietnam. Among other changes would lift the tariff on imported footwear from those countries that New Balance says it needs to remain competitive.
