AI Helps an American-Made Cutlery Company Keep Costs Down
Iowa-based Rada Cutlery has sold top-quality, 100% American-made knives and kitchenware since 1948. Family-owned, the business has thrived by embracing smart changes — like offering new products that meet customers’ evolving needs, and shifting a portion of sales to an ecommerce model — while remaining firm in our commitment to made-in-America quality, value, and service.
Today, we’re upholding that commitment by incorporating new AI-powered tools into our workflow — helping us run and grow our business far more efficiently. By merging our team’s knowledge and experience with AI tools’ writing speed, for instance, we can quickly produce high-quality marketing content. We also use AI-aided imaging tools like Photoshop and DALL-E to generate high-quality photos, backgrounds, and designs, allowing us to complete creative work faster than ever. Critically, AI-powered video-editor OpusClip helps us produce ADA-compliant content, ensuring our site meets all federal and state online accessibility laws.
AI-powered advertising and marketing tools also help us find and retain customers, speeding our growth and empowering us to compete with bigger companies. We use Meta’s AI-powered ads, for example, to efficiently reach customers who are likely to be interested in our products — cutting our advertising costs while boosting our sales. Email- and text- marketing tools like Klaviyo help us improve our customer engagement, and Microsoft’s analytics tools show us which parts of our website attract the most customers, and which receive fewer visitors — allowing us to make smart changes and more sales.
Adopting new AI tools doesn’t happen overnight; it takes research, testing, and workflow adjustments. But we’ve found that once the tools are in place, they save time and money — allowing us to maintain our products’ affordable price-point, focus on making outstanding products that millions of Americans are proud to have in their homes, and continue investing in American jobs and manufacturing.
I understand that AI needs to be regulated; it has to be safe. But I’d advise lawmakers to exercise caution as they make rules. AI is already built into so many tools that small businesses and consumers rely on every day. Every time you use Google Maps, click on an autocorrect suggestion, or browse “you may also like” product recommendations, you’re benefiting from AI. I worry that even the best-intentioned AI regulations may inadvertently shut down or degrade tools that are helping small businesses like mine grow and succeed in today’s digital economy.
AI is here. If lawmakers can find smart ways to embrace it — while remaining firm in their commitment to U.S. values — they’ll help all Americans thrive for decades to come.
