Shinola’s Detroit factory received a Presidential visit from former US President Bill Clinton.
As founder of the Clinton Foundation, President Clinton toured the facility meeting some of the company’s 260 staff, 136 of whom have jobs in manufacturing.
President Clinton met Shinola’s watchmakers and craftspeople whilst touring the factory, based inside the Detroit’s College for Creative Studies, as well as visiting the company’s new leather facility.
“Shinola is a great example of how we can continue to build and expand America’s manufacturing capabilities while creating jobs,” said President Clinton. “It’s exciting to see how the brand is playing its part in the economic revitalization that’s happening in the city of Detroit.”
Shinola’s ethos is to support local manufacturing that sees the company take on local partners anywhere it works. The company makes bicycle, journals, leather goods and shoe polish as well as watches. Detroit has been financially decimated in places by the periodic decline of the city’s traditional automotive industry.
President Clinton has a long track record of supporting workforce development in the United States, including when in June 2011, he established the Clinton Global Initiative America to bring together leaders in business, government, and civil society to generate and implement commitments to create jobs, stimulate economic growth, and foster innovation in the United States.
Steve Bock, Shinola’s chief executive officer, said: “Having President Clinton visit our headquarters in Detroit was a great honor and true highlight for the team. We hope Shinola can act as a business model that can be replicated in cities like Detroit across the US”.
