Posted March 20, 2017

 

By John McCurry

 

Fall River, Mass., used to be one of the thriving centers of the U.S. textile industry. That status eroded over the decades and the decline accelerated since the turn of the century.

 

The latest company to go was Duro Textiles, which shuttered late last summer. One of the survivors is Swan Dyeing and Printing, which has evolved with the times and is doing quite nicely as the lone remaining textile finishing company in Fall River.

 

Swan was founded in 1958 in Swansea, Mass., as a piece dye company. It moved to Fall River in 1971 and specialized in printing commodities such as shower curtains and tablecloths. The original building was doubled to 200,000 square feet in the early 1990s.

 

Mike Rodrigues joined the company in 1999 as executive vice president of manufacturing. It was known as Swan Finishing at that time. He was given the opportunity to purchase the company and its assets in 2004 and began to change its culture and its business model from large runs of commodity products to shorter runs of higher value-added fabrics.

 

Rodrigues took a lean approach. That especially applies to management. There are no vice presidents, and Rodrigues initially handled all sales activities. He targeted the home market with both indoor and outdoor fabrics.

 

“We proved we could be more cost effective than our domestic competitors,” Rodrigues recalled. “We were quicker to market and we proved we could present high quality and innovation of new finishes. A competitor once produced every yard we produce now. We have a talented staff and they can handle the fabrics and get the job done quickly.”

 

Rodrigues cited the general volatility of any industry in the U.S. as his greatest challenge, with companies often at the mercy of political decision makers. But as far as the nuts and bolts of dyeing and printing fabrics, he said he believes Swan can do it better than anyone. He holds out hope that the Trump Administration will be more business friendly than its predecessor.

 

“I know I can’t compete with China, but I can compete with the domestic guys and be the best,” Rodrigues said. “Swan has grown into something beyond my first expectations. We’ve changed most of our customers since the old days. We have one account in the recreational vehicle area, but the rest have been transitioned. That’s 98 percent of our accounts that did not exist before 2004 when I bought the company.”

 

Swan employs about 125 and plans to add more this year. Rodrigues has invested in equipment to improve efficiencies and the company produces more yards per employee than it did five years ago. Current annual sales are about $30 million.

 

Swan has a nucleus of New York City-based customers with others spread around the U.S. It serves brands that include Robert Allen and Waverly. The company also prints licensed fabrics for Major League Baseball and the National Football League. A recent addition to this mix is hockey tape for the National Hockey League.

 

Swan also prints industrial fabrics. Rodrigues says Swan may move into printing high-tech apparel fabrics. Swan was also one of the beneficiaries from Duro’s closing, picking up a piece of its military fabric business.

 

“We will continue to look for other opportunities for dyeing and printing,” he said.

 

Rodrigues said he believes Swan is poised to have a great year in 2017. He added that he believes the company is positioned well in its markets and has a diverse product mix.

 

Asked what he enjoys most about today’s textile industry, Rodrigues said he he loves taking raw fabric, preparing it, creating color and developing a beautiful design.

 

“Every day is amazing to me. We don’t have a product line, so every minute of every day is new.”