CHENANGO COUNTY – National Manufacturing Day is this Friday. Commerce Chenango would like to use this as an opportunity to recognize the efforts and impact of our local manufacturers.

Calling for more jobs in manufacturing has been a hallmark of American politicians and national discourse since the advent of mass production itself, and has been particularly in vogue the past few years. There is good reason for this. The question remains, however, of how best to cultivate that spirit of entrepreneurship that will lead to any given area’s next successful manufacturer. Sometimes new and unique businesses are spun off from existing employers. Sometimes they emerge from a local makers space, university, or hobbyist’s garage. Regardless of one’s view on the best policy approaches to this end, it ultimately takes a person or more often a group of people with a good idea and the willingness to put in the work.

Take Golden Artist Colors, which was started by Sam Golden in 1980, when he was 67 years old. After spending 30 years in his Uncle’s Manhattan based paint business, working with such luminaries as Jackson Pollock and Helen Frankenthaler to produce new types of paint, Sam was prepared to retire. Instead, after moving to New Berlin he jumped back into business, operating out of a 900 sq. ft. barn. Today, their operations in Columbus and Norwich encompass a combined 145,000 sq. ft. and employ 225 people.