October is one of my favorite months because it contains both the national celebration of manufacturing and Halloween. As the month creeps to its ghastly end, I thought I’d create a monstrous mash-up of facts about manufacturing in North Carolina and Halloween!
Manufacturing in North Carolina has a hauntingly consistent presence across the state. Out of 100 counties, 96 have manufacturing located there.
As for the type of manufacturing is done in NC, Chemical and Food Manufacturing brew up a potent contribution to the state’s GDP.
In a bewitching bit of alchemy, the manufacturing sectors that contribute the most to the state’s GDP also generally employ the most workers.
The 9 manufacturing job titles with the greatest share of manufacturing employment demonstrate a wicked variety of skillsets.
Casting our focus to the future, a glimpse in the crystal ball indicates a tantalizing prophecy about what manufacturing positions will have the highest growth potential as well as the highest salaries. The salaries for all but the last position are higher than the statewide annual wage.
As the data demonstrates, manufacturing is still and will remain a powerful industry for North Carolina!
If you’re still looking for a “Made in North Carolina” vibe for your Halloween, take a look at these items:
- Add a Halloween candle from Fernweh Candle Co. or a Candy Corn Beeswax Ghost candle from ReynWicks to your fright night.
- NC produces the most pumpkins on the East Coast, so naturally, those pumpkins find their way into a variety of seasonal brews from Deep River Brewing, Haw River Farmhouse Ales, Foothills Brewing, Wicked Weed Brewing and Big Bross Brewing (to name only a few!).
- Accessorize any outfit or uniform with a pair of Halloween socks! These athletic socks may come from Colorado, but they are produced in North Carolina.
- Don’t let the kids have all the candy fun. Treat yourself to seasonal chocolate from Conjure, Cacao & Cardamom and French Broad Chocolate.
Since this post is Halloween-themed, I have to link to a few articles about Morris Costumes in Charlotte, the largest costume distributor in the world. I had no idea they existed, let alone their amazing history (Bigfoot has a NC connection?!?!).
Happy Haunting!
KeAnne Hoeg
