Jennifer Knight, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Textiles, Consumer Goods, Materials Industries, Critical Minerals, and Metals with the U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration, was welcomed by Glen Raven today at the company’s cutting-edge manufacturing facility in Anderson, South Carolina, where the company produces its Sunbrella® flagship brand. The company is starting to implement a significant expansion plan that was first introduced in 2021, demonstrating ongoing investment and growth by a pioneer in the American textile industry and the sector’s significance to the country’s economy.
Glen Raven CEO Leib Oehmig said, “We were honoured to host Deputy Assistant Secretary Knight at our Sunbrella facility in Anderson, South Carolina to give her a first-hand experience of our advanced manufacturing facilities, sustainable initiatives, and the enthusiastic work of our U.S. manufacturing teams. “The chance to talk with a top trade official about how our country’s international trade policies affect our business and our hardworking employees is priceless,” the company said. We emphasised the value of Glen Raven’s contributions to the communities in which we live as well as the urgent need to preserve a domestic textile and apparel industry and to advance laws that support an innovative and competitive supply chain, cutting-edge research, and a dynamic, skilled workforce. We value the conversation we had with Deputy Assistant Secretary Knight today and are grateful for her commitment to comprehending the difficulties we confront in the area of international commerce.
In order to promote a competitive and robust textile and apparel supply chain, public-private sector collaboration is essential, and I am glad to attendWith its cutting-edge production facilities for high-performance fabrics, Glen Raven is a shining example of our contemporary domestic textile sector, according to Deputy Assistant Secretary Knight. “ITA continues to support American manufacturers and understands the value of developing a skilled, innovative, and diverse workforce.”
With five production plants in North and South Carolina, including a joint venture with Shawmut Corporation, the family-owned Glen Raven, founded in 1880, employs 2,500 people. In order to fulfil client demand, the company is now undertaking a $250 million multi-phase U.S. capacity development plan of its facilities and infrastructure.Knight visited Glen Raven and went on a tour of the Sunbrella® facilities there. Sunbrella® and Dickson® are the two company’s flagship brands within the Custom Fabrics division. There are two further divisions at Glen Raven, includingGlen Raven Technical Fabrics, one of the major business-to-business distributors in the country for the awning, marine, upholstery, and shade sail sectors, together with GlenGuard®, StrataTM, and Glen Raven Logistics; and Trivantage
In addition to operating nationwide distribution and logistics businesses, Glen Raven is a market leader in the upholstery, maritime, shading, automotive, military, geotextile, and protective workwear sectors.
The timing of Knight’s visit to Glen Raven’s Sunbrella® plants is crucial for both the business and the U.S. textile supply chain, which had a $65.8 billion in output and 538,000 employees in 2021. Glen Raven is a component of the larger textile sector, a vital manufacturing sector that supports the creation of jobs, capital investments, and innovative ideas. $20.9 billion will be invested in yarn, fabric, garment, and sewn goods manufacturing in the United States from 2012 to 2021.
