So Excellent, So Bodacious: Check Out Some American-made Smartphone Style

Originally published by the Alliance for American Manufacturing.

Bodacious Cases, the waterproof, protective, and customizable iPhone casemaker, wears its American-made heart on its sleeve. Founded on July 4, 2012, the company is headed by a partnership between CEO Arianna Russell, a young entrepreneur passionate about the Made In America cause; and Precise Mold and Engineering, which specializes in injection molding, thermo plastics, and thermoset plastics.

The partnership has gotten some press, too; the Precise plant in Missouri was visited in December 2012 by ABC News, which featured the company and the casemaker as a part of their Made in America series.

But why so American-made? Russell’s dedication to domestic manufacturing came from her father, a Vietnam war veteran. She explains that keeping it American-made is a way of thanking him and other veterans for their service.

“I feel manufacturing overseas is a great idea if, as the owner, I want to make a few extra bucks,” Russell has explained. “But to me, it’s about more than just money. Those few extra dollars kill jobs, which is the next generation, and I do not want to see that happen. I would rather make less money and create more American jobs.”

Bodacious Cases turned two years old this past Independence Day. Its birthday wish? To create 100 new American jobs by next year.

“People were saying, ‘Just go to China. You can’t do it in the U.S. It’s going to be expensive,’” Russell said. “I found a way to do it here. I proved them all wrong. And it means a lot to me. Our packaging, our cases, our screens – every little thing, even our T-shirts – are 100 percent made here in the U.S.A.”

Shop Bodacious’ iPhone Cases or customize your own here.

Photo courtesy Bodacious Cases and the Made In America Store.

This post authored by AAM Intern Lauren Pak.