Governor Nathan Deal, surrounded on the state Capitol steps by dozens of members of the Georgia Manufacturing Alliance (GMA), recently issued the third annual “Buy from Georgia” proclamation. 

GMA Founder, Jason Moss, noted, “We are thankful for the Governor’s continued recognition of the “Buy from Georgia” proclamation. This initiative focuses on growing awareness of Georgia’s manufacturing community and the goods they produce each day. As a result of this proclamation and many other year-round projects our membership has grown and the movement is gaining momentum. As more manufacturing businesses become aware of each other and purchase from one another, they realize the potential impact this has on their bottom line and the state’s overall economy.” 

Since its founding in 2008, the Alliance has grown to 175 member companies with chapters located in Gwinnett, Hall and Cobb Counties, as well as in the greater Macon and metro Savannah areas. The GMA is best known for providing plant tours which are intended to allow industry leaders to connect with each other as they view best practices in action. In addition to tours, GMA offers a wide variety of training programs that support Georgia’s manufacturing community. Some of the most popular topics include sales, marketing, human resources, safety and operations. 

In response to feedback from last year’s GMA Manufacturing Summit and to encourage the increased momentum of intra-state buying of goods and services, Moss and his Leadership Team have compiled the June 2016 Georgia Manufacturing Directory. Beyond the original industry directory, which carried limited company information, member companies who are listed in the new directory have provided a hundred-word description of its respective products manufactured and/or services provided, along with their Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code. GMA is distributing a complimentary copy of the directory to the top 1,000 manufacturers in Georgia.

The print version will be available in July, while the on-line version, which allows for searches by key word, alphabetically or company name, is already in place at http://www.georgiamanufacturingalliance.com/showcase.php.

“The new Directory is a game-changer,” said Moss. “The manufacturing sector here in Georgia has demanded it. In addition to the other features, it even includes a primary contact for each company.

Moss went on to elaborate that in 2015, more than 1,500 people attended 73 GMA events. He is gearing up for 75-100 events this year, including the annual Manufacturing Summit, scheduled for October 26^th at the Cobb Galleria. In addition to featuring a keynote speaker and having exhibitors, this year’s program will also incorporate breakout sessions for training, such as in the areas of human resources and sales and marketing.  

“Our goal is to have ten chapters, each with a hundred members, for a total of thousand by the year 2020,” said Moss. “That’s not unrealistic when you think that Georgia has almost ten thousand manufacturing operations that employ around three hundred and eighty thousand people!”

About John Tabellione

John Tabellione is an award-winning, professional business writer, complemented by over twenty-five years of strategic communication responsibilities as a Marketing, New Business Development and National Account Sales Executive in consumer goods and commercial industries. 

Experience with Fortune 500 companies, as well as with smaller firms and non-profits, encompassing a variety of products, including those of Georgia-Pacific, Kimberly-Clark and Stanley Works. 

John has a B.A. in English from Fairfield University and an MBA in Marketing from the University of Hartford. In addition, he has studied Russian at the Defense Language Institute at Syracuse University, and Italian language and culture at Kennesaw State University.