not buying China

I have made a concerted effort to avoid buying products, food, anything made in China. Granted, it is difficult, as so much is manufactured there. Sometimes it is unavoidable.

I love Dansko shoes. I bought a new sytle at Nordstrom this year. When I got home, I looked at the sole and thought it looked different - i.e., cheap - than my old Danskos. I looked for the place of manufacture and finally found it on the inside of the top of the shoe - took some searching to find it!

Yup, made in China. I promptly returned them to Nordstrom, stating my reason for return - not that the 20-something clerk cared. I bought a pair of Naot instead after determining that they manufacture in Israel.

Recently while in Whitewater, WI, my friend and I visited Dale's Bootery in downtown Whitewater. There were some sale shoes on a rack, and I found brown Danskos - made in Poland and marked down! Shoe heaven. The proprietor indicated that Dansko was having problems with the manufacture of the soles and according to him, a store in Milwaukee took a bath on returns due to faulty soles - why change? And incidentally, the China-made shoes are just as expensive as the ones made in Poland and Italy.