What is the main theme in the biography, Factory Man?

Globalization is an important theme in the biography. The Bassett Furniture Company was the biggest furniture manufacturer in the world and enjoyed that status for decades. Bassett established factories all over the country and was a leader in producing good quality yet affordable furniture targeted for middle America. As time marched on, entrepreneurs in China and Taiwan began to venture into furniture manufacturing and to explore the possibility of entering into the lucrative American market. Larry Moh who had launched a parquet-flooring company in Hong Kong was one of the pioneers of this effort; eventually his operation become a threat to the Southern furniture industry.

Moh was the first Asian to export furniture to Middle America. In doing so he ambushed the Southern furniture manufacturers, catching them completely off-guard and leaving them without recourse. Almost out of nowhere, there was this new and unwelcome presence in the American furniture manufacturing industry the heart and soul of which was small southern towns.

The Asian furniture was undersold and artificially drove down prices. Old time furniture makers like Bassett were forced to import cheap Asian pieces in order to stay competitive. Ultimately, this new reality caused American furniture factories to close their doors and terminate workers by the hundreds, then by the thousands. In some plants, American employees were required to teach Chinese workers how to create the wonderful finishes and veneer work, crafts and artistry that had taken workers years to hone and develop. Bottom line, American workers were forced to train their Chinese replacements.

Economists insisted that globalization should not be interfered with and be allowed to run its natural economic course. While globalization was recognized as a reality, little consideration was given to the thousands of people who lost jobs and the small towns that were devastated by the loss of its heart and soul.