More than 100 employees at Blumenthal Mills Inc.’s jacquard damask weaving plant in Marion arrived Tuesday morning to pick up their last check as the plant is officially closing for good after more than 30 years.
Marion plant CEO Ken Gunnin confirmed the closing, as did Marion County Economic Development Commission Director Rodney Berry, on Monday night.
“It’s a tough time for them and a tough time for us, but our focus is moving forward,” Berry said.
Berry said county officials and plant representatives sought a number of avenues to keep the facility in operation, to no avail.
“They’ve been a tremendous corporate citizen,” he said of Blumtnhal.
Berry said he was notified the plant was closing Monday night, noting the plant has been struggling for some time.
The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in late October 2008. Filing under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code frees a company from the threat of creditors’ lawsuits while it reorganizes its finances.
Gunnin said in October 2008 the company was in negotiations with another company in Louisiana that would provide capital investment, but those negotiations fell through.
As a result, and because of the current tough economic times, the company had to file for bankruptcy protection, but there were no plans to close the plant, Gunnin said in October. The company’s primary shareholder was working in October 2008 to have an infusion of capital investment that would help the company regain its financial composure.
Blumenthal Mills Inc. is a division of Blumenthal Print Works Inc., which had 450 employees in 2007. Frankie Hasty, the Marion plant’s human resources manager, said the plant employed 250 people in 2007.
Since then, however, the plant scaled down to 138 employees and was operating three days a week.
Marion County had the fourth-highest unemployment rate at 20.7, down from 20.9 percent in September, according to the latest figures from the S.C. Employment Security Commission.
Founded in 1924, in New Orleans, the family-owned company is in its third generation of family management under the direction of Harry J. Blumenthal Jr., according to the company’s Web site, http://www.blumenthalprintworks.com.
Blumenthal began as a sales organization, converting and importing mattress ticking for sale in the United States. In 1975, Blumenthal Mills Inc., a jacquard damask weaving facility, was opened in Marion.
On the Web: Blumenthal Print Works Inc., www.blumenthalprintworks.com
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement