In the month of July, our national pride always rises up. We are so happy to say that every part of Love Bottle is 100% sourced and manufactured in the USA. It was a long journey to make it happen and it was much harder than any of us ever dreamed it would be. We were told many times that it was impossible, but we decided to follow our dream and persevere, knowing that this country is capable of amazing things.
When I first started Love Bottle, I tried to manufacture in the United States, but was told by all the manufacturers that their minimum order was 2-3 million bottles. With our tiny start up budget it was just not possible for us and we found a small run manufacturer in China. I went to visit the factories and though I didn't see any bad practices or abuse, it didn't feel quite right to me. The city where our bottles were made was a city of factories. There was so much pollution that the sky was a weird red-orange. I asked if it was due to the weather, but was told that was just their normal sky. They also had dorm living where the workers lived at the factory, which was very typical in this manufacturing city. These things were in such conflict with the purpose of Love Bottle that I came home and knew I had to find a way forward to being USA made. All along the way, people said don't bother, it's too hard these days, you'll never make it affordable, stick with making them in Asia, it's impossible in the US.
But I held the dream close and I made it a requirement. If we couldn't make the bottle in the USA, I was going to close down shop. And then step by step, there were positive signs and magic introductions to the right people who helped us. We met the people at Owens-Illinois who fell in love with Love Bottle and our mission. They brought down their minimum order to support our dream to manufacture in the USA. We worked with their expert glass designers to create a totally new bottle that truly captured our mission to create an amazing drinking experience that is embedded with love.
There are so many parts to our bottle and to find a manufacture for each part was its own daunting challenge. And then to engineer it so that all the parts came together seamlessly to create a beautiful leak proof bottle seemed like an unachievable goal. But again, we knew it was manufacture in the USA or bust, so we never took no for an answer. In the end, it all came together almost like magic. It helps when you Love on your side <3.
We truly searched the entire country from end to end to find the best the USA had to offer. We are so grateful for our partnering manufacturers who help make our bottle so beautiful and high quality. Our Love Bottle maker family extends across the USA, and we wanted to highlight where each part of the bottle is made.
Glass Bottles - Made by Owen's Illinois. Headquarters in Perrysburg, OH and bottles made in Plant N19 in beautiful Crenshaw, PA.
Ceramic Lids - Small family owned businesses - Mold maker in northern PA and our Ceramic manufacture hand crafts our lids lovingly in a small town outside of Chicago, IL.
Silicone Seal and Wire Former - Also family owned businesses in the Chicago area.
Printer - Located in Toledo, OH, they are the best in the business and allow us to create beautiful lead free, scratch resistant, dishwasher safe designs.
Headquarters - Portland, OR. We love our hometown of Portland! They support small businesses like we are the best thing in the world! Our team is a family and it is such a gift to work with such amazing people. We extend beyond Portland and we have key members in Paris, France and Ohio as well.
Some days, I look back and I am amazed that we did it. We encountered so many hurdles that tried to derail us from our vision. We stuck with it and ultimately the impossible became possible! It is amazing to know that from concept to production, everyone involved knew that the purpose for this bottle was to be an agent of love in this world; for our bodies, our spirits, our community and our planet. We are so grateful to everyone who touches the creation of every Love Bottle and for all of the people who use Love Bottle and join us in our mission. We are proud to be an all American product and we say thank you every day!
xo Minna