Globalization

Here at EZwhelp we purchase products and supplies from sources in the United States, Canada, and China. But with few exceptions we ship exclusively to the United States. Alas, it is true--we are mostly an importing company. And we fully understand that popular thought and politics deems "importing" as something akin to dining with Satan (especially if it's China, yes I said China). We are religious types and don't relish supper conversation with or about the devil. But really, the "Made in China" stigma is not merited.

My parents raised my siblings and me on a healthy dose of Americanism. To be sure, we are quite patriotic. Our family tradition for generations has been to carefully plan vacations around prominent historical sites relative to our nation's founding and growth. In addition, we have made it a point to regularly discuss and read about American history with our children. There is much to be grateful for. But the world is bigger than America.

As a boy I thought a great deal about the world's problems as I understood them. I imagined that somehow God could shake us all up and drop us into different neighborhoods, where we would live. Then we would all make friends, political boundaries would dissolve, and there would be no more poor, no tears, and no hunger. Magic! I was a globalist and a free market advocate from the beginning.

Such thinking was naive. Yet even in my mature years I wouldn't mind a citizenship requirement for everyone to live (probably at an early age) in a foreign country for at least one year. Community service would be part of the experience, and of course, learning the language. This would not be magic either, but it would go a long way toward understanding and tolerance.

In my family--including my siblings and their children--we fluently speak a variety of international languages, including: Thai, Chinese, Spanish, Portuguese, and German. We have lived in these countries and learned to appreciate their cultures, values, and humanity. Foreign friends are many. Unlike typical tourists, we have been in their houses, played their games, and helped bear their burdens. We love them.

Not long ago I hired a young lady in Bangladesh to do some graphics work for me. The work was not difficult and the time requirement was brief. She pursued the task with enthusiasm and delivered her work quickly. I was humbled by her hourly rate and pleased to be in a position to help feed her family.

In contrast, here in the U.S. our company has had some challenges with hired help. Jobs have come in late, and in some cases been completely forgotten. We have been known to pay high dollar for unskilled labor simply to encourage timely and responsible work. For us, our expectation has never been minimal, so we've always paid more than minimum wage. In some extreme cases locally we have paid 25x the hourly rate of our Bangladeshi friend for basic labor.

We do hope, at every level, that here in America we will all be "worthy of our hire." This means knowing enough about what's going on in the world to change with the times. Then this means pursuing education and opportunities tuned to those changes. Finally it means delivering honest work for honest salaries. This is what we expect of our children.

EZwhelp wants to deliver quality products at affordable prices to our customers. Sometimes this requires an acknowledgement that business dealings, and work, are not American entitlements. Our big world has become small and we are not shy about sourcing from far away locations. Everybody has a right to eat. Please know that we always first consider local sources for labor and materials. Indeed this is our preference.

—Boyd