Footwear Industries of Tennessee Inc. (FIT) was incorporated in 2013 based in Knoxville, TN. FIT manufactures a range of work, safety, hiking and hunting boots through a state-of-the-art, direct-injection molding machine that creates the soles of the boots. FIT is a division of the Merchant House International Group, who has manufactured footwear for over 30 years. Initially the group specialized in work footwear, but in 2003 diversified into American-style western boots. The Footwear division operates three shoe factories In Tianjin, China and in recent years has added production lines to increase capacity to over five million pairs of shoes annually. We supply major retail chains like Wal-Mart, Kmart and Sears and received Supplier of the Year awards on multiple of occasions. In addition Merchant House makes safety- and non-safety outdoor shoes for a variety of nationally recognized brands. Footwear Industries of Tennessee was established with the goal of shortening manufacturing lead times and reducing inventory overheads for its customers. This re-shoring of production demonstrates the Groups commitment to more sustainable manufacturing and to returning jobs to America. Besides supplying US customers, FIT will also export to Canada, Australia and other countries Tennessee was selected as the site for the investment because of the states central location and its excellent transport links across the US. Jefferson City, with a skilled workforce and strong work ethic, was deemed the perfect FIT for the project. Footwear Industries of Tennessee Inc. has opened production with 50 workers. The company has plans to triple that number in the next 3 years.