Mohican Mills, one of the last remaining bastions of North Carolina’s textile manufacturing industry, is closing its doors after more than 60 years. Employees were notified Wednesday that the plant is expected to cease operations sometime between now and June 8, cutting 157 jobs in the process.
As a subsidiary of Fab Industries, Mohican operated all of its manufacturing activities from its 750,000-square-facility in Lincolnton, about 20 miles northwest of Charlotte, including knitting, dyeing, finishing, packaging and shipping. Past customers included Hanes Brands and Nike.
CEO Steven Myers said in a statement that the company’s operations will be wound down “in an orderly fashion” as it completes current customer orders and prepares to sell its facilities.
“We are truly sad that this action has to be taken but with all options exhausted to continue in business we are left with no alternative but to close,” he said.
When Mohican was named “Industry of the Year” in 2012 by the Lincoln Economic Development Association, more than 300 people were employed by the company.
The Charlotte Observer reported that a representative from Fab Industries said a Workers Adjustment and Retraining Notification had been filed to the mayor and to the North Carolina Commerce Department. Other media outlets said the closure is likely to have a trickle-down effect as the plant was Lincolnton’s largest municipal water and sewer customer.