Solid support for US recycler

Martex Fiber Southern Corporation – one of the leading US textile recycling companies – has announced its successful recapitalization, with its founders joining together with private equity firm Milestone Partners, along with  Sovereign Bank and THL Credit, to provide the necessary equity capital.

Based in Spartanburg, South Carolina, with offices in Philadelphia, Martex has the capacity to recycle more than 130 million pounds of pre-consumer apparel and industrial textile waste and nonwovens in the US and Central America annually.

It sources textile waste primarily from large apparel manufacturing cut-and-sew operations and converts it into higher-value remanufactured fibre materials and yarn products, through its Jimtex Yarns division.

In the last two years, Martex has committed to new product development and plant expansions, including the investment of over $2 million dollars in new equipment and the creation of additional USA-based jobs.  

The firm is helping companies to understand what is possible with their waste streams, both ensuring that all materials are actually recycled into a product, while no materials inadvertently go to the landfill, and potentially creating a new source of revenue for that waste.

In the next two years the company plans to increase its waste collection efforts and expand its product offerings.  To meet this goal, it is further increasing its recycling operation by 30% and has already added substantial new capacity in 2012.

All Martex Fiber products are SCS certified for recycled content and manufactured in the USA.  

“Driving real change in the US manufacturing sector will depend on companies like ours investing in the US and partnering with textile producers to develop new products and processes,” said co-founder Jimmy Jarrett. “There is great opportunity to make something constructive from waste that employs US workers.  If manufacturers commit to using more recycled content, we can make a difference in our manufacturing economy and reduce our use of natural resources. Milestone and Martex Fiber will be looking for the best strategies to drive waste reinvention and spur new innovation.”