Have you ever wondered where a certain product is made before it lands on a store shelf or in an Amazon box on your doorstep? ImportYeti has all the answers! To call this the most fascinating website ever could be a stretch...but maybe not. 

Hat tip to Jessica and the folks at Planet Money for highlighting this website on a recent episode that brought it to our attention. 

Pitchers and catchers have recently reported to spring training so let's try and find out where Rawlings Sporting Goods come from. So, I type into the ImportYeti search bar: 

As the website name suggests, ImportYeti tracks information on goods imported by Rawlings via sea tracked by bills of lading that all importers are required to file with customs. The first chart tracks sea shipments over time. Notice the impact of the pandemic in 2020 and 2021:

Next, we peel back the onion to identify the specific suppliers to Rawlings and the products they are providing. I was interested in baseball gloves and their largest supplier of baseball gloves with 543 shipments is: 

Wondering who else Cortina supplies in the sporting goods industry? 

How about other products that Rawlings imports by category? 

What about the trade routes to deliver the goods to Rawlings? Get ready to be overwhelmed. 

More than 90% of Rawlings imports come via Asia. 

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So, how to use this with students? 

• Have them pick a company that they are interested in. 
•  Have them review the shipping trends. What impact did the pandemic have and what have been recent trends? 
• Pick out 1-2 of their largest suppliers (based on number of shipments). What products are they providing and where are they based?
• What other companies do the main suppliers provide their products to? 
• Overall, where are most of the products for your company being imported from? 

Enjoy! 

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More engaging linteractives are available on the NGPF Blog. 

About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.

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