photo credit: kevindooley

Am I the last so-called journalist in this country? (stupid question, I’m not even one of those<g>)

You may or may not know I write a business *opinion* column once a week in the Beacon – and that isn’t even my “real job”.

What am I talking about? Yes, the CPSIA again.

Rob over at CPSIA Central emailed today and said that Glenn Beck wasn’t covering the CPSIA because Glenn or someone on the show staff says “there’s no public outcry”.

Really? Is that the minimum daily requirement to get a journalist to write a story? I must’ve missed something.

Per Rob’s request, I wrote a letter to the Glenn Beck Show in hopes that they would realize that THEY (the press) are quite often the catalyst to creating that public outcry.

Here’s my letter to Mr. Beck:

Mr. Beck,

My understanding is that you feel there is no reason to cover the CPSIA story on the Glenn Beck Show because “there is no public outcry”.

I suppose that Watergate wasn’t worth covering for that reason, and nor was Iran-Contra or the Lewinsky story, et al. Part of what causes a public outcry is that journalists learn about stories that the public SHOULD learn about and/or SHOULD be upset about – and proceed to educate them via their media.

Isn’t that part of your job?

Honestly, it might be that you just aren’t listening in the right places. You’re a busy guy. You can’t possibly be everywhere and hear about every little story that affects tens of thousands of businesses across the US.

In addition, I suspect a lot of the lack of attention stems from the idea that this really only hurts “mommy businesses” – and the perception is that these “mommy businesses” really don’t do much but keep moms out of the mall and give them a little something to do when baby is taking a nap.

Because those perceptions are so dead wrong, I ask that you do three things:

First: Read http://www.rescuemarketing.com/blog/2009/01/13/strategic-cpsia-awareness/

Notice that this ISNT just about “mommy businesses”, but it reaches out to a substantial piece of the business community.

Second: Google CPSIA and see what you find: 985,000 search results. No outcry indeed.

Third: If you’re really interested in learning more about the CPSIA, read http://www.rescuemarketing.com/blog/category/cpsia/, http://www.thesmartmama.com/bg
http://www.fashion-incubator.com just to get started.

Thanks for listening,

Mark Riffey

Rescue Marketing

406-249-0307

By the way, if you feel like joining the fray, Mr Beck’s email address is me at glennbeck dot com.

Look what happens when you step away from the CPSIA bonfire for a couple of days to get some work done…after all, *someone* has to bail out the country, may as well be me.

Senator DeMint from South Carolina is working on some legislative fixes to the CPSIA, but more importantly, in his blog he describes the steps you must take to get support for his changes. 

His common sense proposal to change the CPSIA is also covered in that same blog post. Clarity – a little shocking.

Once again, I’m asking you to call your senator’s WASHINGTON office (not the local, in-state one) as DeMint instructs.

The letter to the Commission is here and the press release is here.

Good news. Buys some time to get the darned thing right.

Thank Kathleen Fasanella for getting it started, but also thank social media

I’d be lying if I didn’t tell you that the power of social media is what made this happen.

Not directly, but as a viral means of getting the word out and getting a grass roots effort on fire.

Via Twitter and blogs, a fairly small group of advocates found the people and motivated them to call, fax, email and write to Congress and the CPSIA.

Now, if this is proof enough for you, maybe you can find a way to use it as a marketing tool.

photo credit: CarbonNYC

Over at PopTort.com, consumer advocate Andy Hoffman says that opponents to the CPSIA need to “grow up”.

I shared this comment with Andy on his blog, but just in case he doesn’t see fit to mark my comment as public, I’ll repost it here. Feel free to join in with your own reply.

Here’s what I had to say to Mr. Hoffman:

You’re only missing one little issue, Andy.

This isn’t about greedy business owners wanting to avoid the lead law.

In a lot of cases, its about stay at home moms who squeeze a second income out of their cottage business and use that as a way to enable them to stay home and be a mom to their kids prior to their kids entry to school.

Some have managed substantial success, doing more than just squeaking by.

These moms (and others) who manufacture organic cotton onesies, tshirts and so forth for infants (along with a litany of other stuff) quite often started making these things *because* of the crap that is sold at WalMart and elsewhere that was found wanting in the environmentally-kind department.

Before you think that I too am just another whiner throwing a tantrum – be aware that I dont own or work for a children’s products business and NONE of my clients are in that category.

What the uproar is really about is giving small businesses who dont have the economies of scale on their side a means of testing that doesnt put them out of business.

When you manufacture (which often means “sew”) something for $6 and tell it for $12, you cant afford to spend $57 to test it. Anyone can see that math isnt going to work.

The big thing that many miss about this law is that it isnt limited to impacting those who make, retail or resell children’s products: it’s the ripple effect throughout the economy from there.

All of those businesses use accountants, lawyers, graphic artists, web site geeks, and so on. All of them will be doing less of that.

To get a full image of the ripple, I suggest you read the post linked to above (in his blog form) and take note that 80% (yes, EIGHTY) percent of the people in the room were standing when I was done asking them to.

If 80% of the businesses in your area are affected by a law that could easily be altered, it might be in your best interest to look at it without wearing the jaundice-tinted Consumer Reports hat.

Small businesses aren’t asking for an exemption and they arent asking for a different set of rules.

All they are asking for is the ability to use the component testing performed by the manufacturer of the lot of cloth, vat of vinyl, etc.

That allows everyone using that lot (etc) to absorb the cost, rather than every manufacturer having to absorb the full cost of the test for every line of items they make from that bolt of cloth and so on.

Thanks.

Your turn: Pay a visit to Poptort.com and let Andy know how grown up you are.

Former FEMA Director Michael Brown

One of the natural reactions to a CPSIA discussion with store owners, manufacturers, the press and other business people that I speak to about the Act is “Oh, the government would never do anything to shut down an entire niche of businesses, especially in this economy.”

Well, they would be wrong.

Take a long, hard look at the 18th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1919 and reversed in 1933 (depression, anyone?)

Regardless of how you feel about the consumption of alcoholic beverages, think long and hard about how that hurt a specific niche of businesses (bars, breweries, dance halls, distilleries, night clubs and similar), and what the situation has in common with today’s CPSIA fiasco.

It isn’t just about the bars and the drunks. Moms and dads lost their jobs.

I’m from the government and I’m here to help you

Now, are you so sure that the Federal government – or more accurately, Congress – wouldn’t intentionally do something that might impact an entire industry – intentional or otherwise?

That’s what the CPSIA will do to the segment of the children’s product industry that doesn’t depend on massive manufacturing plants in China (clothing, toys, books, you name it).

It might push those overseas plants to adhere to safety regulations (a welcome change from the People’s Republic of Melamine), but it also grants them the power to decimate much of their competition – simply due to economies of scale that finished product testing costs will burden handmade manufacturers with.

The CPSIA *favors* China with its “step-wise approach”

You heard me right. Large scale manufacturers can afford to do the testing. They simply have to raise their prices a little. It’s the little guy, the stay-at-home mom, the cottage industry shop that employs 12 local people – they are the ones whose business gets hammered by finished product testing costs by lot.

“This step-wise approach will impose immediate changes to protect children while giving manufacturers additional time to develop controls to ensure that all children’s products are free of lead.” (see http://oversight.house.gov/documents/20071003152943.pdf)

The reality is that the legislation isn’t limited to toys – even though Rep Pelosi *repeatedly* uses the term toy when talking about the CPSIA. Toys are not the only thing the law controls.

And yes, 6 months might be time enough for manufacturers to “develop controls” – even the small ones – if you gave manufacturers the ability to use component testing for products manufactured after the law becomes effective.

A Scout is no longer Thrifty

If you still think it wasn’t intentional…. Look long and hard at the “simple, commonsense” effort Representative Waxman and Senator Feinstein made to be sure that trouble to make the law retroactive, covering to all children’s products ever manufactured.

Operative text from the letter: “United States Senator Dianne Feinstein, California: This language unambiguously restricts not only the manufacture of these products following enactment, but also the retail sale of any children’s toy manufactured before this deadline.”

Thrift stores? Not on their radar. Doesn’t matter if they don’t have any intention of selling lead-infused baby bottles, doesn’t matter if they are a specialty resale shop that only sells clothes made from organic US-grown cotton and wool: they can’t even take a chance, because they can’t afford to test anything given their margins.

Being thrifty could become a lot more difficult if the law stands as written.

I don’t even like “lead” pencils

Again, no one wants lead in stuff made for kids. Likewise, not everyone wants to close their business and go work at Wal-Mart or what not.

Yet that’s clearly the direction that the CPSIA is driving many small businesses because the economics of testing using XRF and digestive technologies couldn’t possibly have been considered in the sphere of homemade products and similar items.

They’re PROUD of what they’re forcing businesses to do, without a second thought to the smaller businesses that will be forced to close or cut children’s product lines because they have no way to reasonably test their products in an economical fashion.

One thing becomes clear when you did around for comments made by the lead (heh heh) proponents of the CPSIA: Small businesses and work at home moms weren’t even on their radar.

And they still aren’t. It hasn’t been that long since the CPSC’s spokesperson dismissed those working against the CPSIA in a derisive tone, calling them “mommy bloggers”.

Be careful. Those mommy bloggers just might buy a swift boat, if you know what I mean.

photo credit: kyz

This morning I received a private comment from a reader. He gave me permission to repost it here.

Hello Mark

In Europe they have a “no lead policy” based on roHS (Lead Free). All the US components I buy are roHS compliant so that they may be sold in Europe.

I can also sell in Europe by simply documenting my purchases. I can not afford to sell in to the children’s market any longer in the USA as testing costs would exceed the Gross revenue of our children’s products. As of Feb 10th we will no longer make little backpacks for kids.

This is like a dream come true for China and Walmart. In about six months all the kids will be wearing green clothes with little red stars. The toys will have the same color scheme of course the selection might be a bit mundane.

Dave Sisson CEO
Jandd Mountaineering Inc

Hopefully, the pressure that all of you are putting on your Congressional reps and Senators is helping behind the scenes. Likewise, our calls to the CPSC. This situation is sickening and the timing simply couldn’t be worse.

photo credit: Peter Van Lancker

Tonight I wrote a press release for use with my local media, so please feel free to use it as is or with your own contact/business information so that your local media can get a feel for the local impact of the CPSIA in your area.

You can get the CPSIA press release here (pdf).

Constructive criticism is welcome, as is posting your version as a comment.

Read for yourself…. http://republicans.energycommerce.house.gov/Media/File/News/1.21.09_CPSIA_Letter_to_Henry_%20Waxman.pdf

Not sure if anything will come of it, nor if it is a partisan smokescreen to simply say “We said to hold up, but you didn’t.”

Time will tell. If the letter is on the up and up and everyone’s intentions are honorable (yeah, I know<g>), then it might be good news.

Ian over at Aquinas and More Catholic Goods sent me some reaction he’s gotten from his wholesale sources regarding CPSIA.

As you might expect, they’re all over the board.

We have found that several of our vendors are in denial about the law and have flat out said they won’t get things tested because they already know that their components are safe. They have said they will send us a letter saying that everything is safe but aren’t actually going to get things tested.

Several have said that there is no way this can be enforced so they aren’t going to bother getting certified because everything is made here in the US.

Several others have said that testing will bankrupt them.

Retailers, what are you hearing from your wholesale vendors? Or have you bothered to ask?

photo credit: L. Lew

Last week after I left for a winter camping trip with the Scouts, a letter to CPSC Chair Nord came flying out of the House from Waxman, Rush, Pryor and Rockefeller. I just got to the letter this evening, and it’s worthy of comment. 

You can read the Waxman-Rush letter to Chair Nord here.

Many of the proposals in the letter sound like they are listening, such as their suggestion that the commission approves component testing and that the CPSC’s commissioners get off their duffs and make some firm policy decisions. Having the general counsel issue non-binding statements with words like “may” when it comes to certain types of testing isn’t helping anyone comply with the law.

No one really wants exemptions and component testing is a good happy medium for many smaller vendors, but there are plenty of other decisions to be made, both by the CPSC and by Congress. Once Tuesday’s lovefest ends, it’ll be time to get down to real business – like fixing this law or temporarily rescinding it until it can be fixed so that it provides the safety needed without crushing small business. 

As Kathleen Fasanella suggests, “small business”  is in the eye of the beholder. That 500 employee small business designation by the Small Business Administration has long been a joke.

What I wouldn’t suggest is that this letter is an all-clear after the tornado. The pressure on Congress and the CPSC must remain if they are to take action that is of use to kids’ safety AND to small business.

photo credit: jglsongs

Someone posted this on the site today as a comment but I think it’s worthy of a post of its own.

This comment came from Charlotte Reppy, of Grammies Attic in Gaithersburg, Maryland.

Enforcement is a joke. Have any of you ever endured an inspection by the CPSC police? I was paid two visits by their kind folks when one of my friendly competititors turned me in for selling custom made cotton nightgowns that were primarily sold to little girls who were dancing the part of Clara in the Nutcracker Suite ballet. (Others were sold to parents for their children to ride Polar Express trains and for Christmas Card portraits. (http://www.grammies-attic.com/new-nannys-touch-white-cotton-nightgown-with-white-eyelet-trim.html) None were sold as sleepwear.) CPSC hauled away $1000 of beautiful gowns, not mass made in some lead-laden China sweatshop, but each individually sewn by a US seamstress sitting at her sewing machine using a vintage pattern. Three years later, the case has never been resolved, so I am still subject to product recall, fines, and imprisonment for violating flammability standards.

Now I’m sitting on $150,000 of uncertified inventory, most of which is cotton and linen christening apparel. By the way, I’m 5 miles away from CPSC headquarters. Guess who is going to be the first one visited on February 10? Anyone know where I can get some yellow Police Hazard tape to mark off all the “Hazardous Waste” that I can’t sell in my store?

Simply stunning.

photo credit: carboila

The Wall Street Journal opinion page finally sounded off on the CPSIA yesterday. Pretty good discussion, though they didn’t really get into the ripple effect of the CPSIA. 

That’s the part that concerns me long-term.

photo credit: MobilFunk7

Today, baby clothier Whimsical Walney announced that they will be closing at the end of business on February 9, 2009 as a result of the impact of compliance with the CPSIA.

Later in the day, the owner of Bella-Bambini, maker of elaborate but reasonably priced girls dresses, emailed to say they were also closing because of CPSIA.

These aren’t businesses that want to poison kids. They aren’t businesses that use lead. They make baby clothes from organic fabric and other natural materials.

Again…how many businesses have to fail before you pick up the phone? See the picture above. Is that what you want your downtown to look like?

Appalling. Simply appalling.

photo credit: Brian Forbes

Tonight I managed to get around to looking at the raw footage of CPSC spokesperson Vallese’s interview with KBAL (Baltimore) regarding the CPSIA.

The reporter did a nice job of trying to pin her down on specific issues. It was a shame that the interview ended without a discussion of component testing or homemade products for kids.

The whole interview was more or less about the impact on thrift stores.

A few quotes stuck out in the seven minute video.

“That law is not defined”

The reporter asked Vallese how thrift stores like Goodwill and Salvation Army are supposed to deal with the CPSIA. Vallese replied that testing is not required by thrift stores and resellers, but that  “there is a lead level limit of 600ppm that has to be met”.

When pressed on how a thrift store is supposed to figure out what to do (in the face of that apparent contradiction), her comment was “that law is not defined”.

I felt it was too bad that the reporter didn’t ask her “How do you enforce a law that is not defined?”, but she did continue down a parallel trail, pressing the CPSC spokesperson for a usable strategy for thrift store businesses.

“a level of confidence”

At that point, Vallese indicated that the business owner needed to arrive at a “level of confidence” regarding the lead content of the products they are selling. The reporter clearly wasn’t satisfied with a partial reply and repeated the question a bit differently.

Vallese replied “they simply need to make a business decision at a level of confidence that the products that they are selling meet the law.”

When asked how they could determine if items met the law, the reporter pressed on, asking what Vallese would suggest to arrive at an acceptable “level of confidence”.

Vallese’s response offered three alternatives:

“they can look at it and make an informed decision”, “they can call the manufacturer”, or “they can test”.

Gee, that’s pretty helpful. I’m no lawyer, but I’m guessing that isn’t something I want in my arsenal when I go to court:

“Well, I looked at it and made an informed decision. I tried to reach the manufacturer of this 9 year old item (who was in the Philippines) but they didn’t reply. I didn’t have $38,000 for a XRF scanner and I can’t afford to send every piece in my store to Jennifer, so Vallese’s ‘informed decision’ was the only option I had left. Have mercy on me, your honor!“

“screening but not a deciding measure”

That opened up the discussion of testing (again, a shame that the issue of the cost of testing did not come up).

When the reporter asked about testing technology, Vallese indicated that the suggested screening technology is XRF.

When pressed about how the CPSC uses XRF, Vallese indicated: “We use XRF technology as a screening tool but not a deciding
measure.”

Wasn’t that useful? You can use it, but we don’t make decisions based on it.

“mommy bloggers spreading misinformation”

Oh yeah, there was also that “mommy bloggers spreading misinformation” comment.

<Captain Kirk voice>Must. Use. Restraint.</>

As I noted a few days ago: Motrin and many others have learned this lesson the hard way. They could have avoided all that simply by asking the nearest married man.

Husbands like myself already know the “DONT TICK OFF THE MOMS” rule. Not only has the CPSC torqued the so-called mommy bloggers AND the moms and others who own businesses affected by the CPSIA, but they’ve called them out by specifically insulting them.

I think there must be a tad too much lead in the paint in the CPSC offices. Maybe that’s why Vallese resigned.

Over Christmas, my grandpa told me all about the CPSIA. Big people probably know it as the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act.

Do you have any idea how long it took me to learn to say that without messing it up? Those are big words for a 6 month old, even a cute one like me.

I learned the big words from my grandpa. He came to see me over Christmas and I overheard him talking to my great-grandpa about this new law.

When they talk while they’re holding me, I look up at them and bat my big blue eyes. It makes them talk funny to me. When they go back to their conversation they think I’m not paying attention, but I am.

I could tell you their checking account numbers, but I wont. We girls know everything about our men – even the grandpas.

The CPSIA is like a poopy diaper that’s leaking around the edges. It irritates my bottom and it gets all over everything. It gives me a world-class case of diaper rash. So bad that not even Gold Bond medicated powder makes it feel better.

Why the poopy diaper?

Well, my grandpa gave me lots of reasons to be cranky by talking to great-grandpa about the CPSIA when I was in the room. He said they forgot to think about the nice mommy who sits at home and takes care of her kids. In her spare time, she made my little homemade baby booties.

He also told my great-grandpa about all the other moms who make nice stuff for babies like me. Pretty dresses, books, booties, furniture, and a whole bunch of things for older kids like my cousin Daniel.

Grandpa talks about XRF

Grandpa made me laugh, but I didn’t let him notice. He only thinks I can smile right now. I heard him talking about all the things that small retailers and kids product makers could do to get attention from important people about this CPSIA thing.

A couple of his ideas sounded like good ways to get the local media interested in the CPSIA. He said they really like stories with irony. I’m not sure what irony is, but hey, I’m only 6 months old.

Grandpa said the press likes stories about politicians. I like it when grandpa tells me stories. There’s always nice people and animals in them. Politicians must be nice people if the press likes stories about them.

One idea he talked about was getting someone to use a XRF scanner to test all the kid toys in the gift shops in the Senate office building, House, Smithsonian and other Federal buildings that tourists like to visit.

Another idea I heard him talking about was getting a Senator to pose for a video or photo while giving a flag to a young kid – and then testing the flag with that XRF thing. He sure says “XRF” a lot these days.

It sounded like the thought he wouldn’t be able to take the XRF thing into those fancy buildings, but he said they could just buy some stuff inside, walk out front and test them while on video. He said to be sure and have some local press on the scene.

He didn’t explain what all that XRF stuff meant, so I urped on him just to remind him to explain everything. A girl has to know what her grandpa is up to.

Grandpa’s meeting

After he cleaned up the spitup, grandpa talked about what to do in a meeting of people who weren’t aware of CPSIA. He said something about a chamber of commerce meeting. At the beginning of his meeting, everyone in the room is sitting down having lunch. One at a time, they stand and introduce themselves, then they sit back down.

When he got up to introduce himself, he asked for the group’s patience to go through a quick exercise.

He asked them these questions:

• If you make or sell toys, shoes or clothing for kids, please stand up.
• If you write, illustrate, sell or distribute books, please stand up.
• If you make or sell diapers or diaper covers, please stand up.
• If you make or sell home furnishings, bean bag chairs, bedding, cribs or anything else for a child’s bedroom, playroom or nursery, please stand up.
• If you work in a library, please stand up.
• If you sell used childrens’ books printed before 1985, please stand up.
• If you have a gift shop in your hotel, campground, resort or bed and breakfast, please stand up.
• If you create, sell or rent outdoor gear or backpacks for kids under 12, please stand up.
• If you create or sell jewelry or accessories for kids, please stand up.
• If you create, illustrate, make music for, sell or rent electronics or video games, please stand up.
• If you run an antique store that sells anything for kids under 12, like toys and clothes, please stand up.
• If you write, publish, sell or distribute school supplies, educational materials or science kits, please stand up.

He pointed at the group standing and said, “All these people are affected by the new children’s product safety law”, noting that he had left some brief info on their lunch tables to look at after the meeting.

He told them that as of Feb 10 if they had anything in their stores that didn’t have a CPSIA compliance certificate, they could be fined $100k for selling non-compliant items – even if they were already in inventory before Feb 10th.

I’m not sure what that inventory thing is, but it sounds expensive. I need to ask for one when I learn to talk. Grandpa loves to buy me stuff.

The other shoe drops

Grandpa’s questions got worse. He asked everyone in the room to look around at the people standing.

He said “If you have a client, dealer or a supplier standing, stand up and join them.”  Next he said, “Look at all the people standing. If they or any of their employees spend money at your business, please stand up.”

Then he told them that everyone who wasn’t standing probably wasn’t affected by the CPSIA – except that all the people standing might have a lot less money to spend around town because of the impact of CPSIA testing and compliance.

Finally he said “If you have any questions, see me after the meeting”, thanked the group for their cooperation, and sat down.

That’s how I remember it, but I was kind of distracted by a bottle when he was talking to great-grandpa.

Small business colic

I’m so colic-y about the CPSIA, I just wanna spit up all over the people who voted this in without thinking about all the moms who stay home with their little kids and make pretty dresses and things for girls like me.

PS: No, I’m not 6 months old in that photo, are you kidding? I’m so much bigger now. My grandpa really likes that picture. It’s from back when I was 2 months old, just a baby, not a big girl like I am now.

Download audio file (CPSIAawareness.mp3)

The CPSC has opened a comment period for component testing (as opposed to testing each variation of a final product).

For details, see the pdf here: http://www.cpsc.gov/about/cpsia/componentpartscomments.pdf

On the surface, this seems like a much better solution for small, homemade product designers. But, it isn’t as simple as it seems. Most importantly, it might allow for a central database (vendor by vendor at least) of GCC/test data that makers of childrens products could use for references and compliance.

Time will tell as the implementation is everything.

The impact of CPSIA hit the TV news today in Houston, where the ABC station covered the soon-to-close Pink Zebra Boutique that I mentioned here the other day.

If it’s on TV, is it real enough for you?

See http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/consumer&id=6600379

Learn more here: http://dappersnappers.blogspot.com/2009/01/plan-and-sale.html 

How many small businesses have to fail or see their revenue fall before it impacts your business? I’ve only listed 2 so far, but there are many more.

Pick up the phone and call your Senators, House rep and the CPSC.

photo credit: hans s

This week, a series of #CPSIA posts about what to do next and how to get the word out to other manufacturers, retailers, the media in your area and perhaps most importantly – to your elected officials. If you want to forge ahead with your homemade products business despite CPSIA, then read on.

If you don’t have any direct reason to care about dealing with the CPSIA (you should have an indirect reason to care), don’t worry – there are other posts this week that will help you with your business. I haven’t forgotten about the rest of you, it’s simply that this CPSIA issue is very time-bound and it’s important to deal with a number of issues relating to it before Feb 10 arrives.

If you’ve given up, read on anyway. You might develop enough hope to get back in the game. 

Surviving the February 10th deadline

I’m assuming that you got this far because you haven’t given up and you’re wondering what to do in the next few weeks before the CPSIA kicks in.

Before Feb 10th gets here, you’ll need a few things in your quiver.

If you’re a retailer, you’ll need a CPSIA General Compliance Certificate (GCC) for every item (or every lot of items) that you sell. The manufacturer of the items should provide these, it is not your responsibility as a retailer to test and create the certificates (sort of).

Why “sort of”? Because it IS your responsibility after Feb 10 to sell only those things for which you have GCC coverage. A nice catch-22. If you buy items from the same lot, each item is covered by the GCC for that lot. Still, each lot must have a GCC.

Yes, you’re right – there is a significant paperwork tracking issue here: You get to keep track of a form for every lot of every item you sell or have sold. We’ll get to that later in the week.

As for the items that won’t comply as of Feb 10, big retail (Wal-Mart, etc) is handling this by demanding that manufacturers accept returns on unsold merchandise that doesn’t comply. You may not have that option with your suppliers, but it is worth checking into. 

CRITICAL: You should be sure that all future contracts to purchase from your distributors and wholesale suppliers include a clause that allows you to return the items at the manufacturer’s cost (and for a full refund) if they are not CPSIA compliant.

What if my manufacturers say that providing the GCC isn’t their responsibility? Or what if they say they haven’t tested. Obviously, your actions here will depend on how bad you want their merchandise, but the bottom line is that while they do have to provide you with a GCC, finger pointing will do you no good if a CPSC inspector walks in your door.

You either need to get the manufacturer’s GCC, have the items tested yourself, or simply don’t buy from that manufacturer. If you sell those items, you’ve got the ultimate responsibility to have a GCC for each item or lot of items. 

What about my existing inventory?

For retailers, the choices here are slim: Either discard the items, return them to the manufacturer (if you can) or have them tested.

You can’t legally sell them if you don’t have a GCC. It might be tempting to simply sell them and try to run the non-compliant items out of stock after Feb 10. I wouldn’t advise that. Fines are $100,000 for violating the CPSIA.

Sure, it’s a roll of the dice whether you see an inspector or not, but if you do see one, it’ll probably be when you least expect it. Most small retailers I work with are not in a position to handle a rand0m $100,000 fine. Even if you are, you probably have better things to do with that money:)

If you are a manufacturer, you must test items and provide GCCs to your retailers on a lot by lot basis. If possible, provide an online area of your website where retailers can look them up by SKU and by lot number. Easy for you, easy for them. By the way, if you import items from outside the U.S. – you’re the manufacturer, so don’t assume you can skirt the issue that way. 

As for those GCCs, I’d also consider including a copy in every shipment’s paperwork, since one must be provided for each lot. Be sure that lot numbers appear on invoices, bills of lading and packing slips.

If you have an online system to look up your GCCs, I’d suggest that you print the URL of the GCC for that lot on all that paperwork as well. It gives the retailer no excuses when it comes to recognizing that you’ve provided a GCC. In fact, doing this offers your clients some options that your competition may not offer.

Always look for an edge – and making CPSIA compliance easier for your retailers is certainly a plus at a time when they are all pretty worried about how they are going to deal with this unfunded mandate on their time and record keeping resources. 

If you are a manufacturer who sells retail (ie: most people who make things in their own home, shop etc), then you still need to have your items tested. There are some exceptions, but they are pretty slim pickings, like natural fabrics that haven’t been dyed, inked or coated with any other material. If you are unsure, I suggest talking with an attorney who is familiar with the CPSIA. 

So…whether you are a retailer, manufacturer or both, that’ll get you working till August.

What about August?

August is “tomorrow” in the real world. You know that you’ll blink and it’ll be here. 

So what do you do to get ready for August? Well, it really depends on your products.

XRF testing is – so far – off the table as of August, when your merchandise must be tested by a certified third party testing lab. Problem is, the CPSC doesn’t have to issue the rules for a post-August CPSIA world until May. Until then, choose your merchandise wisely. As the rules flesh out over the next few months, we’ll come back to this topics from a post-August retail worldview.

That means you have that 100% inventory turn challenge twice this year. Don’t wait till the last minute – and again, if you are a retailer, be sure your purchase agreements with suppliers are iron-clad. I’d suggest that you try to stock your store with merchandise that is already compliant with August’s rules if at all possible.

Download audio file (ForgingAheadWithTheCPSIA.mp3)

That scene in Network where Howard Beale goes a little nuts pretty well describes my attitude regarding the CPSIA and those who continue to ignore it (and the calls to Washington about it). No, the clip isn’t G-rated, sorry.

I realize this issue has pretty much pegged my blog-o-meter lately, but I ask you to think about it – If thousands of these artists, craftspeople and such go out of business, who does that hurt besides them? 

Other small businesses. Which hurts other small businesses. And so on. 

Like it or not, you’re in that food chain somewhere. 

Meanwhile, 345 people in and around my town were yesterday and today. In a town of 4500, that hurts – particularly when there were several hundred other others laid off indefinitely just a week or two earlier.

I’ll say it again: Get off the couch, pick up the phone and call your Senators, US Representative and the CPSC. Do it before your business is the one that’s closing or laying off people. 

As for you… the one who thinks it doesn’t apply to you, I have a word for you: Pink Zebra.

Feeding the Pink Zebra

Pink Zebra Boutique is the name of a mom-owned boutique in Katy, Texas. She just made the tough decision to get out of the “stuff for kids under 12″ market. Just because of the CPSIA. She’s not closing her business, just giving up a big piece of it for no other reason than the CPSIA. 

A real mom. A real business in small town. A retail storefront that now has to figure out how to replace that revenue because they have to shut down part of the business. There will be more.

Just a reminder in the meantime: Don’t tick off the moms.