Outsourcing was nearly the death of Cabot Hosiery Mills. Once the largest sock supplier in the country, with customers like Banana Republic and The Gap, the mill couldn't compete with Chinese pricing and lost most of its customers.
Realizing the 70-year-old family-run company couldn't compete to make the cheapest sock, Cabot decided to make the best sock.
He mortgaged his house and with the help of a loyal local banker, started a division called Darn Tough in 2005. Cabot hired R&D and brand managers, tested countless types and weights of yarns, and came home nightly with socks hanging out of every pocket.
In the end, Darn Tough produced a premium performance sock that is guaranteed for life -- an industry first.
The 140 mill-workers (some of them second generation working alongside their parents), took a pay cut to keep the mill running. Many never missed a day's work despite Vermont's legendary snowstorms and even during the devastating floods that hit the state this summer.. One employee came to work even after losing his house.
They are the reason Darn Tough has regained its position as the #2 best-selling sock in the country, Cabot said. "These people are reliable, dependable and solid and it's their commitment to quality that makes Darn Tough so successful."
The brand has been doubling sales every year for the last four (generating $10 million to $12 million in revenues in 2011) and is on pace to grow 35% to 40% in 2012. Cabot plans to hire 12 more full-time employees this year, something he is proud to be able to do.
"I wish our country would stop outsourcing jobs," he said. "People are still buying necessities, like socks. We can produce better quality products right here and come back as a manufacturing nation."
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