Not long after that, here came China into the WTO. And When China came into the WTO and quotas subsequently went away, that could have been the death of this industry.

 

And we were threatened by the CAFTA. There were a number of people who were hurt badly by the CAFTA agreement – the pocketing people and others, for instance – but by and large CAFTA has been something that was a savior for the industry. And I believe had it not happened, there would have been complete turmoil in Central America. As my great hero Jesse Helms said, “if you don’t do something to get those countries working, you’re going to hear the pitter patter of feet coming into the United States.” And while many of them did come, I think we slowed that down. The textile industry in this country was instrumental in helping to create a great apparel industry and a great supply chain that has enabled job creation in this hemisphere and has also enabled a lot of us in the textile business to ship a lot of yarn to Central America. So it has in fact been beneficial, although we have been vehemently against all of those agreements, to some extent, including Chile and Peru.

 

But the thing that came out of all of those agreements was the yarn-forward rule and the fiber-forward rule in Mexico. That has in fact been the savior for many of us in the yarn business. And obviously with the yarn-forward rule it has allowed a lot of people in the fabric business to be successful.

 

I think if you look around today at those who were adept at change and accepted the fact that we are in a global economy, both on the buy and sell side, and accepted that we had to change our thought processes, it began to work.

 

On the pending Trans-Pacific Partnership Act (TPP):

The big threat now is TPP and, frankly, the big concern is that we keep the yarn-forward rule of origin. We simply have to have that. And then we have to make certain, as best as we can with the limited funds we have against the lobbyists who work on behalf of the retailers and importers, that we have that yarn-forward rule and that short-supply list, both the temporary and the permanent, doesn’t get so far out of kilter that it has a devastating effect on this industry.

 

The great fear is that this administration – and certainly the free traders on the other side of the aisle – in their enthusiasm to get a deal at the last minute, don’t throw us under the bus to get it done. That’s what scares us all.

 

But if we can get a good TPP, I do think things bode well for this industry, even with Vietnam. If this yarn-forward rule continues to exist and this deal is written so that non-signatory countries don’t get an advantage, I think we still have a chance to do OK. The apparel business, the cut and sew, is gone. It’s going to be in Vietnam and some of the other countries in Southeast Asia. If they’re allowed to get fabric from India and China, it will be tough on a lot of us again. So that’s a big deal.

 

On the recent NCTO meeting in Washington, D.C. and the textile industry’s contributions:

What I saw in Washington was a combination of groups coming together who are doing OK for our industry and doing OK for our country. People may say “what do you mean by doing OK for our country?” Well, our industry creates a lot of jobs. It maintains a lot of jobs, which is extremely important. The proposed change in the minimum wage law doesn’t have any effect on us because the wages that we pay are fair in the communities in which we operate. Our capital expenditures have been at record levels. Our companies provide great health care benefits, even though none of us know what Affordable Care or Obamacare is going to do for or to us. We’re the third largest exporter in this country – and how can the people in Washington not look at that?

 

In every community we operate in, we do so much for. We’re environmentally friendly. We are unparalleled in manufacturing in providing a safe workplace. So how can these people in Washington not be positive about our industry in helping us to maintain where we are? I also believe that most of the banks in this country that turned against the textile industry and some that absolutely wanted out now have a much more positive feel about the textile industry.

 

Overall, I thought the enthusiasm for the NCTO meeting was extremely good. There were more positive attitudes than I’ve seen in a long time. Auggie (Tantillo) is doing an outstanding job as NCTO president, as are members of the staff. And nobody can say enough about (Unifi Chairman and CEO and past NCTO Chairman) Bill Jasper and the three years he committed to this industry and the time he took away from Unifi on behalf of textile employees across the country.

 

When I think about the NCTO and the industry, we have come a long way from being in a position of having to oppose everything to now being positive and being for something if it doesn’t damage us. In the old days, we opposed NAFTA, we opposed CAFTA, we opposed everything. And now this industry has moved forward and accepted globalization and accepted that we all do business somewhere else and we source from other places. We’ve accepted it and embraced it and we can be for something provided it does no harm – just like the medical profession: first, do no harm. I think that’s important. That’s a big step for us.

 

On industry prospects and his company’s diversification:

So by and large, I feel pretty good. I do look around our industry and see people who have done some things to maybe not have their companies totally dependent on the textile part of their business. I know that’s the case for us. We have a craft business that’s so far removed from the textile industry that we don’t discuss it in the same paragraph. We sell to major craft store retailers such as Michaels, Walmart, A.C. Moore and Jo-Ann Fabrics. And it’s all about creativity and marketing and sales and merchandising and distributing to those major retailers.

 

If anybody had told me 17 years ago that we would be selling scrapbooking supplies and beads, I probably wouldn’t have believed that. We’ve had the Hampton Art business about seven years now. We actually owned it before we exited the craft yarn business, which was consolidated by a Canadian company about three years ago that is actually doing their processing and distribution here.

 

Then as another part of the diversification of our company, in a fibers-related business but not specifically textiles, we acquired a company in the nonwovens area (Carolina Nonwovens Co.) that’s primarily doing acoustical insulation products for appliances and the automotive industry, along with a lot of cushions and pads that are used in institutional mattresses, as well as a lot of baby items. We’re excited about the nonwovens business and think there’s a good future there for our company. We’ll continue to invest and continue to diversify in that business. There are about 40 employees in Lincolnton, N.C. It operates as a separate division of National Spinning Co. We like the business. It’s very environmentally friendly. It’s a green business because a high percentage – almost 65 to 70 percent – of the products we use are recycled. And that’s jeans and other apparel that has been garneted. We use that to create the finish product.

 

On the company’s future – and his:

Where we go in the future, I don’t know. We have an outstanding team here. The strong part of our company, beyond the fact that financially we couldn’t be any stronger, I suppose, is the strong team we have in manufacturing, administration and sales. And that goes for all three divisions. So we’re kind of excited about the future and frankly I’m excited about the textile industry.

 

Our employees own more than 50 percent of the company in an ESOP. And our employees have benefited from the fact that we are a survivor and have done well for them by giving them an opportunity to create a nest egg that, in their retirement, they’ll have something to look forward to other than Social Security. And certainly we want to continue to emphasis our 401k plan.

 

And who knows how long ol’ Jim might be around. I’m approaching 73 but I have fun every day. I had an agreement with our former chairman that I would be around until I had five days in a row that I didn’t want to come to work. Or if my health got to a point where I couldn’t give the company a fair day’s work for a fair day’s pay. Or the first morning that I couldn’t find the office – then I’d probably go home and stay.

 

On threats to the industry:

Threats to our industry? The lack of capital to do the things that a lot of us want to do, for one. And we have the threat from Washington every day. I told a group that asked me how difficult it is to be in business in today’s environment that the thing that frightens me the most every day when we come to work is our government, both at the state and federal level – not all of the other outside influences we have to deal with. Our government is the biggest threat. Our relationship with our employees, our suppliers, our bank, our community, our competitors and our customers couldn’t be better. The threat is our government because I don’t think those guys in Raleigh or wherever other the state capitals are or those people in Washington really understand what goes on on Main Street and how important our jobs are in the communities that we operate in.

 

Also, there are the threats of those trade agreements and whatever these people in Washington who happen to be in power at the time want to do. Who knows what may come out of it?

 

And then, lastly, one of the very biggest threats is our healthcare costs because we have a mature workforce. Frankly, in most of the communities we’re in, we’re the best deal in town to work. And our workforce is mature. And sometimes the maintenance of a mature automobile or a mature workforce gets to be very expensive. And that’s a major concern with the fallout of Obamacare.

 

A moment of reflection:

Other than that, my 42 years in this industry couldn’t have been better. And my decision to be a part of it and to associate with so many fine people and make long-lasting friendships, what more can you ask for in life?