The Dixie Group history

In 1925, Dixie Spinning Mills merged with Dixie Mercerizing Company.

The company remained profitable during the Depression, and in 1936, added to its production capability with the purchase of the Durham Hosiery Mills in North Carolina.

1950 New spinning plant opens in Lupton to produce synthetic yarn.

In 1951, Dixie began to diversify, moving into the making of carpet yarn with the purchase of Dalton Candlewick, spinners of cotton yarn for the high-volume tufting industry.

In 1963, Frierson retired as president, becoming chairman of the board.

1964 Dixie Mercerizing Company changes its name to Dixie Yarns, Inc.

In 1979 he became Dixie's president and CEO when his father stepped down as chairman of the board.

In 1980, Dixie Yarns operated 17 plants in five states and had a workforce of some 5,000 employees.

In 1986 he bought China Grove Cotton Mills Co., which gave Dixie entry into more specialty yarn markets with Nomex, a synthetic fiber used in fire-retardant clothing, and Kevlar, for bulletproof vests and uncuttable safety gloves.

As Ayssa Lappen explained in a 1988 Forbes article, "Cotton apparel yarn with a stretchable Lycra core costs more to manufacture than traditional, undyed commodity cotton yarn, but it also sells for about one-and-a-half times the price."

The carpet industry was going through a period of major consolidations during the early part of the decade, and Frierson made his move in 1993.

In 1994, Dixie bought California-based Patrick Carpet Mills and incorporated it into Masland, marketing its product line under the name Patrick Carpet.

C-Knit began operating in 1995, providing cutting operations in South Carolina to prepare components that were shipped to plants controlled by Dixie in Central America where they were sewn into garments.

Floorcovering accounted for two-thirds of the company's sales in 1996.

The company changed its name to The Dixie Group in May 1997.

In 1998 Dixie began aggressively selling off its textile factories and using the cash to pay off debt.

"The Dixie Group Sells Yarn Facility in Ranlo, North Carolina," Business Wire, May 28, 1999.

When the factory-built housing market suddenly plummeted in 2000, Dixie's profits suffered.

In 2003 Dixie was excelling with its three floorcoverings brands: Dixie Home, Fabrica, and Masland Carpets.

Gary, Bob, Jr., "Chattanooga, Tenn.-based Carpet Maker's Sales Jump 26 Percent," Chattanooga Times/Free Press (Tenn.), October 29, 2004.

―――――――, "Dixie Group Sees Higher Carpet Sales, But Flat Profits," Chattanooga Times/Free Press (Tenn.), August 2, 2005.