Valdese Weavers manufacturers 85% of its fabric in the U.S.
HIGH POINT — One of the prevalent conversations at the spring High Point Market centered around concerns over the potential of tariffs on the fabric and leather categories as upholstery buyers begin placing their orders for fall introductions.
North Carolina-based Valdese Weavers is ready to provide solutions, according to Patrick Shelton, senior vice president, sales and marketing. Described by company officials as “passionate about Valdese’s domestic capability and capacity to take on new business,” Shelton said the company is poised to support its industry partners with a plan already in place.
“Our strategy as a company remains unchanged as over 85% of our business is manufactured in the United States,” Shelton said. “Our primary focus has always been on our domestic, vertical manufacturing operation to leverage all of the benefits associated with producing and servicing our customers in the U.S.”
Shelton added that Valdese’s global sourcing strategy is twofold, noting that the company doesn’t expect any “meaningful shifts” in its plans.
“We source yarns from over 17 countries (excluding China) to offer a broad toolbox of components for our design team and customer base to work from that satisfies the textile needs of the many markets that we serve,” he said. “As we analyze the impacts of the tariffs on these components, we have determined that the short supply of certain yarns, supply chain challenges of others, and overall relative cost still supports purchasing these components from around the world.
“Our global fabric sourcing has always been very strategic in the sense that we purchase items that we cannot produce domestically or choose not to produce based on the outsized value or unique aesthetic that they offer which supplements our domestic offering. We will gauge what our customers’ appetite will be moving forward on products sourced from China as we continue to strengthen our relationships with our partners in other countries to continue to provide our customers with a well-rounded product assortment,” said Shelton.
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During the upcoming Interwoven Textile Fair in High Point, May 20-22, Valdese Weavers will join a long list of domestic and international fabric and leather suppliers eager to highlight new constructions, trends and value offerings for upholstery buyers, among others. Shelton said that the chief focus for Valdese will be working with its customers to address product assortments that might be in a state of upheaval while also providing stability through a range of fabrics made in North Carolina.
“Our business is built to be able to flex and service volume business or one roll at a time within our standard lead times, and we are ready and prepared right now to take on more business. We have a full labor complement and are fully operating three shifts a day, five days a week,” Shelton said.
The conversations with upholstery buyers have centered around the uncertainty of pricing to date, according to Shelton. He added that Valdese is engaging in strategic discussions with its partners to explore how to help them navigate the tariff waters and that the company has seen a spike in new domestic opportunities.
“We’re bullish on what this could potentially mean for our domestic operations and we are making every effort to identify areas where we can support our customers to offer them a sense of stability in both the short and long term,” said Shelton. “Consumer confidence and demand could certainly change things, but we will be ready when called on to service our customers in the same manner in which we have done for over 100 years.”
That century-plus experience has allowed Valdese Weavers to expand its market share through diversification of its customer base and markets served. The diversification supports stability for the company and operations long-term and creates capacity flexibility to support shifts in increased demand. Additionally, the company is making capital investments in new equipment as well as renovating the design studio at the company’s main facility in Valdese, N.C.
“COVID times provide a good example,” Shelton said. “Our residential business exploded, while the demand for contract and hospitality fabrics for hotels and office spaces declined rapidly. Our ability during that time to flex our operation allowed us to service our customers with consistent lead times, while some of our competitors stretched to over 50 weeks. We have that same capability and more today because we continue to reinvest in our business since that time.
“A core part of our business strategy has always been to continually reinvest in our business,” Shelton concluded. “We continue to make capital investments in new equipment that allows us to compete with anyone in the world.”