In today’s global marketplace, there are still some brands that seem quintessentially American, American as apple pie —even though food experts say that the apple pie originated in England. But this month, Harley Davidson, one of those blue chip American brands, announced that for the first time in its 121-year history, it would move the manufacturing of three Harley models—Pan America, Sportster S, and Nightster—overseas to Thailand. The move has rattled more than a few pistons among domestic Harley Davidson workers and loyal Harley riders. And it’s making me wonder, when it comes to “Made in America”, does anybody today still care?

Consumer attitudes about where goods get manufactured have had an interesting history. There was a time after World War II when items made in Japan under U.S. military occupation were seen as cheap or of poor quality. But when Japan and other parts of Asia began rising as electronics superpowers in the 1950s and 60s, that perception changed. Today we import more than we export. Our current trade deficit is a whopping $75 billion dollars.

In the U.S., many have long believed that a robust manufacturing industry underpins the American middle class. However, by the 1990s, pressure to lower production costs and keep growing profits drove many domestic brands—from appliances to ready-to-wear—to set up shop overseas, where labor costs are significantly cheaper and most workers are not unionized. According to Sourcing Journal, the largest reporting agency for the apparel industry, more than 97 percent of the apparel sold in the U.S. today is made elsewhere, including another now-sorta All-American brand: Levi Strauss. Once manufactured exclusively in the U.S., almost all of Levi’s jeans are now made in either Pakistan, Mexico, Bangladesh, Egypt, Africa, China, India, or Indonesia.

 It may or may not surprise you to hear the names of these other American expatriate brands. Rawlings MLB baseballs are stitched in Costa Rica. Apple’s iPhones are almost exclusively made in China. Nike shoes and apparel are largely made in Asia. Fender and Gibson guitars, the instruments that made American folk and rock history, are now made in Mexico and Vietnam. The quintessential American pickup truck—the Ford F150—is still “assembled” domestically in Michigan and Missouri, but the truck’s component parts are made in Canada, Sweden, Poland, Germany, Hungary, China, Japan, and the United States. And the American Girl line of dolls has never been made in America, only Germany and China.

Here’s what’s weird. Despite the drop-off in American manufacturing for almost 30 years, the majority of U.S. consumers still prefer goods made in America, according to a survey done by the Thomas Network, the “big green book” for American manufacturers. Their survey revealed that not only did 61 percent of Americans prefer to buy “made in America” products, but also 45 percent of U.S. consumers said they believed that the quality of American products was superior to those made overseas.

So what gives? It really boils down to how price sensitive or how patriotic you are. Morning Consult Pro published its annual “Made In America” report on 2023. The report concluded that many American consumers are willing to pay more for goods made in the U.S.A. But here’s where price-sensitivity comes into play. Though we’re willing to fork over more for “Made in America”, we do have our limits. The report states that we’ll pay up to 10 percent more for American made goods, but no more.

To the patriotism factor, Morning Consult Pro’s research also says that patriotic Americans are likely to pay even higher rates for American-made goods—with baby boomers and our friends in red states showing greater enthusiasm for that upsell than Gen Z adults and our equally good friends in blue states.

There’s another factor I haven’t mentioned that affects this issue in a big way: tariffs. Historically, the U.S. has imposed tariffs on goods imported from overseas to protect the American manufacturing industry and prevent foreign exporters from flooding U.S. markets with cheap goods. Here’s where it gets interesting. In some cases, domestic tariffs have already led to the phenomena known as “reshoring,”—American manufacturers who took their production offshore returning it stateside. One such brand is GE, founded by famed American inventor and businessman Thomas Edison. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported in a recent article that GE was investing $450 million in a new manufacturing facility in Louisville, Kentucky. GE made the move from offshore back to domestic production of its washing machines because the import tariffs on their foreign manufactured machines drove up the consumer price 50 percent. Another reshoring example is Guardian Bikes, a manufacturer of children’s bicycles. Guardian brought their manufacturing back to Austin, Texas. The vast majority of other kids bikes are still made in China, including Schwinn, another “American” brand.

You know by now that I’m all about telling your brand story. I think about Harley Davison—one of only two American motorbike brands that survived the Great Depression. Maybe the Gen Zs out there, when they’ve saved up enough to drive home that Harley Sportster S, won’t give a damn that it wasn’t made in America. I do know this: telling a brand story about your “American heritage” gets dicey when you start manufacturing offshore—whatever your reasons are. I, for one, believe that, for the sake of brand integrity, some things ought to remain American—and not just in name only.

As for me, I’m writing my Congressman. Better yet, I’m writing Jochen Zeitz, Harley’s President and CEO.