Burlington Industries

Burlington Industries was a major American textile manufacturer whose roots lay in a mill founded by J. Spencer Love in Burlington, North Carolina, on November 6, 1923. Initially organized around cotton production, the business gained momentum by adopting rayon soon after the fiber reached the Southern market. Rayon offered manufacturers and consumers a lower-cost alternative to silk, and Burlington used the material to build a rapidly expanding network of mills in central North Carolina. By the mid-1930s, it operated the largest rayon-weaving operation in the United States, had moved its corporate headquarters to Greensboro, and controlled 22 factories in nine communities. The company was consolidated as Burlington Mills Corporation in 1937 and became a New York Stock Exchange company. Although it initially concentrated on rayon, it expanded into hosiery in 1938 and broadened its product range after World War II. During the war, it supplied nylon parachute cloth to the United States government, while thousands of male employees served in the armed forces and were replaced in mill operations by female workers. After the war, Burlington invested heavily in plant modernization and expanded into cotton and nylon commercial textiles. In 1952 it became the first textile corporation to use a television advertisement, reflecting the growing importance of branded textile products and consumer marketing. By the mid-1950s Burlington had been reorganized into nine divisions and had become the world's largest synthetic-textile producer, with dozens of facilities and tens of thousands of employees. Its activities eventually included yarns, apparel fabrics, hosiery, carpets, upholstery, and furniture-related businesses. The company entered the furniture sector through acquisitions in the High Point and Lexington areas of North Carolina, complementing its position in upholstery and interior textiles. Its Greensboro headquarters, completed in 1970, became an important symbol of the company's scale and regional influence. Burlington undertook extensive capital spending in the late 1970s and early 1980s to modernize equipment and improve competitiveness. In 1987, however, management faced a hostile takeover attempt and borrowed heavily to execute a leveraged buyout. The transaction placed substantial financial pressure on the company, contributed to layoffs and the closure of a research facility, and took Burlington private until its return to the New York Stock Exchange in 1992. During the 1990s, competition from lower-cost foreign imports contributed to continuing losses and workforce reductions. Burlington filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November 2001. Its assets were acquired in 2003 by WL Ross & Co., which sold the carpet division to Mohawk Industries and subsequently combined the remaining Burlington business with Cone Mills Corporation in 2004 to create International Textile Group. The historic corporate organization and Greensboro headquarters disappeared, but Burlington survived as a textile brand within successor companies. International Textile Group later became Elevate Textiles in 2019, and Burlington remains associated with that group's textile operations and brand portfolio. The company also left civic and legal legacies, including support for North Carolina State University's educational nuclear-reactor program and the United States Supreme Court's 1998 decision in Burlington Industries, Inc. v. Ellerth.

J. Spencer Love founded the textile corporation that became Burlington Industries in Burlington, North Carolina, in 1923. Love and his father transferred machinery and capital from a previously sold Gastonia operation, supplemented their investment with stock sold to local residents, and began building the Pioneer Plant in early 1924. The mill opened with approximately 200 workers and a nearby mill village. Cotton production initially performed poorly, but the company's adoption of rayon transformed its prospects. Because rayon was less expensive than silk, demand grew during the Great Depression, allowing Love to acquire struggling mills and install looms capable of processing the new fiber. By 1935 Burlington operated the largest rayon-weaving business in the United States. The headquarters moved to Greensboro, and by 1936 the company had 22 factories in nine locations. In 1937 the operations were unified as Burlington Mills Corporation and listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The business added hosiery in 1938, ending its exclusive reliance on rayon. During World War II, Burlington produced nylon parachute cloth for the United States government. Approximately 4,000 male employees entered military service, while women filled many jobs in the mills. Postwar Burlington diversified into cotton and nylon commercial products and committed substantial funds to facility expansion and modernization. Its 1952 television advertisement was an early example of a textile corporation using television to market itself. In 1955 the company adopted the Burlington Industries structure, organized into nine divisions. By that period it had become the world's largest synthetic textile producer. Fortune ranked it among the largest American corporations in 1961, when it employed tens of thousands of people in the United States and abroad. Love died in 1962, after which the organization entered a new management era. The company expanded into furniture and related interior products during the 1960s and early 1970s. It acquired Globe-Home Furniture in 1966, United Furniture in 1968, and National Upholstery in 1971. A new Greensboro headquarters designed by Odell Associates opened in 1970. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Burlington reinvested heavily in manufacturing equipment, while its principal businesses increasingly centered on yarns, apparel fabrics, carpeting, and upholstery. A hostile takeover challenge in 1987 led management to arrange a large leveraged buyout financed through Morgan Stanley. The resulting debt burden contributed to layoffs and the closure of the company's Jamestown research and development facility. Burlington remained private until it returned to the New York Stock Exchange in 1992. The company then faced intensifying competition from cheaper imported textiles, leading to financial losses, workforce reductions, and facility rationalization. On November 15, 2001, Burlington filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection with approximately $800 million in outstanding debt. The restructuring included the closure of seven facilities and the elimination of about 6,650 jobs. In 2003 WL Ross & Co. purchased the company's assets for approximately $614.1 million. The carpet division was sold to Mohawk Industries for approximately $352 million, and the remaining Burlington operations were merged with Cone Mills in 2004 to create International Textile Group. Burlington employees left the historic Greensboro headquarters later that year, and the building was demolished in 2005. The Burlington name continued as a brand within International Textile Group rather than as the former independent corporation. International Textile Group became Elevate Textiles in 2019 under Platinum Equity ownership. The broader Burlington legacy includes its role in the development of North Carolina's textile economy, its contribution to North Carolina State University's nuclear-engineering education program, and the employment-law precedent associated with Burlington Industries, Inc. v. Ellerth.

1. 2019Successor became Elevate Textiles

   International Textile Group was transformed into Elevate Textiles, which retained Burlington within its brand and textile portfolio.

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2. 2004Merged with Cone Mills

   The remaining Burlington operations were combined with Cone Mills to form International Textile Group.

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3. 2001Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing

   Burlington sought bankruptcy protection amid losses and increased competition from lower-cost imports.

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4. 1992Returned to the New York Stock Exchange

   Burlington relisted after operating as a private company following the leveraged buyout.

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5. 1987Leveraged buyout

   Management used substantial borrowing to resist a hostile takeover and take the company private.

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6. 1970New Greensboro headquarters opened

   The company opened a headquarters building in Greensboro designed by Odell Associates.

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7. 1966Entered the furniture market

   Burlington acquired Globe-Home Furniture Company, beginning a series of furniture and upholstery-related acquisitions.

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8. 1955Reorganized as Burlington Industries

   The company adopted the Burlington Industries identity and organized its activities into nine divisions.

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9. 1952First textile-company television advertisement

   Burlington used television advertising, an early example of mass-media promotion by a textile corporation.

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10. 1938Hosiery added

    Burlington broadened its product scope beyond rayon by entering hosiery production.

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11. 1937Burlington Mills Corporation listed

    The company's factories were unified as Burlington Mills Corporation and the company joined the New York Stock Exchange.

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12. 1935Largest American rayon-weaving operation

    Rayon demand and mill acquisitions made Burlington the largest rayon-weaving operation in the United States.

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13. 1929New York sales office opened

    The company established a sales office in New York City as it developed a broader commercial presence.

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14. 1928Second mill constructed

    Burlington expanded its manufacturing base with a second mill.

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15. 1924Pioneer Plant begins operations

    The Pioneer Plant opened with roughly 200 workers after construction began alongside the Piedmont Heights mill village.

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16. 1923Textile corporation founded

    J. Spencer Love founded the company in Burlington, North Carolina, establishing the business that later became Burlington Industries.

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A large-scale, diversified textile manufacturer serving apparel, home-furnishing, interiors, and industrial markets, with a historical emphasis on synthetic fibers and vertically integrated mill production.

• Rayon fabricsSynthetic textile fabrics

  Rayon was the product that changed Burlington's trajectory. After cotton production failed to generate sufficient momentum, the company adopted rayon as demand expanded for a lower-cost substitute for silk. Burlington acquired and modernized mills to weave rayon and became the leading American rayon-weaving operation by the mid-1930s.

• Nylon textilesSynthetic textile fabrics

  Burlington developed nylon products after World War II and supplied nylon parachute cloth to the United States government during the war. Nylon later became part of the company's broader commercial textile portfolio alongside cotton, rayon, and other synthetic materials.

• Apparel fabrics and yarnsApparel textiles

  Apparel fabrics and yarns became central Burlington businesses as the company diversified beyond its original rayon specialization. Its mills supplied materials for clothing and related textile applications, supported by a broad manufacturing and sales network.

• Carpet and upholstery textilesInterior textiles

  Carpet, upholstery, and other interior textiles formed a major part of Burlington's late twentieth-century portfolio. These activities were connected to the company's furniture-market expansion, although the carpet division was sold to Mohawk Industries during the bankruptcy-era restructuring.

• HosieryApparel textiles1938

  Burlington entered hosiery production in 1938, an early step in broadening its product mix beyond rayon weaving and into finished or semi-finished apparel-related textile products.

• 1952Television advertising initiative

  United States

  Burlington used television advertising to promote its textile business, an unusual and early marketing move for a textile corporation at the time.

  Outcome. The campaign is remembered as an early example of textile-industry use of television advertising; specific campaign creative and performance data are not identified in the available reference.

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• 2003Sold assets to WL Ross & Co.M&A

  The bankruptcy process required a new ownership and operating structure for Burlington's remaining assets.

  What changed. WL Ross & Co. acquired Burlington's assets and Wilbur Ross became chairman.

  Aftermath. The carpet division was sold to Mohawk Industries, while the remaining business was combined with Cone Mills to create International Textile Group.

  Burlington asset purchase price. Approximately $614.1 million (2003)

  • Mohawk Industries — Mohawk Industries acquired Burlington's carpet division during the restructuring.
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• 2001Entered Chapter 11 restructuringStrategy

  Burlington experienced financial losses during intensified competition from lower-cost foreign imports.

  What changed. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and began consolidating its manufacturing footprint.

  Aftermath. Seven facilities were closed and approximately 6,650 positions were eliminated before the assets were sold and reorganized under new ownership.

  Outstanding debt at bankruptcy filing. Approximately $800 million (November 15, 2001)

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• 1987Used a leveraged buyout to resist a hostile takeoverM&A

  A Canadian textile company and a New York investor threatened a hostile takeover of Burlington.

  What changed. Management borrowed heavily through Morgan Stanley to block the takeover and acquire the company.

  Aftermath. The transaction increased financial pressure and was followed by layoffs, closure of the Jamestown research facility, and a period of private ownership before relisting in 1992.

  Leveraged-buyout borrowing. Approximately $2.4 billion (1987)

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• 1930Adopted rayon as a core manufacturing materialStrategy

  The company's initial cotton production was not sufficiently successful, while rayon was emerging as a lower-cost alternative to silk in the Southern textile market.

  What changed. Love redirected manufacturing toward rayon and equipped acquired mills with looms capable of processing the fiber.

  Aftermath. Rayon demand during the Great Depression supported rapid expansion and helped Burlington become the leading American rayon-weaving operation.

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• 1998Burlington Industries, Inc. v. EllerthControversy

  The United States Supreme Court issued a significant employment-law ruling concerning an employer's potential responsibility when a supervisor creates a hostile work environment. The case became associated with Burlington Industries as the employer-defendant.

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• 2003WL Ross acquires Burlington assets

  WL Ross & Co. acquired Burlington's assets during the bankruptcy restructuring. The carpet business was later sold to Mohawk Industries, while the remaining operations were combined with Cone Mills.

  M&A
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• 2001Burlington Industries files for Chapter 11

  After years of pressure from lower-cost foreign imports and financial losses, Burlington sought bankruptcy protection and subsequently closed facilities and eliminated thousands of positions.

  Bankruptcy
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• 1987Burlington Industries faces leveraged buyout and restructuring

  Management responded to a hostile takeover threat with a heavily financed leveraged buyout. The ensuing restructuring included workforce reductions and closure of the Jamestown research and development facility.

  M&A
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• 1955Burlington Mills becomes Burlington Industries

  The company was reorganized under the Burlington Industries name with nine operating divisions as it expanded beyond its original rayon business.

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1. Burlington Industries