A manufacturer is a person or company that makes products in large quantities, usually in a factory.

When you buy a bicycle, a toy, or a phone, a manufacturer produced it. Manufacturers take raw materials like metal, plastic, or wood and transform them into finished products ready for people to buy. A car manufacturer might start with steel, rubber, and glass, then use assembly lines and robots to build thousands of vehicles. A toy manufacturer might mold plastic into action figures or dolls.

The label on your clothing often says “Manufactured in...” followed by a country's name. This tells you where the factory that made it is located. Different manufacturers might make similar products, like how multiple companies manufacture sneakers or computers, each with their own designs and quality standards.

Manufacturing changed human civilization during the Industrial Revolution, when factories and machines allowed people to make far more products than ever before. Before modern manufacturing, most items were made one at a time by individual craftspeople. Today, manufacturers produce nearly everything we use, from pencils to airplanes.