Turkish company plans to reopen old textile plant in North Carolina

A textile firm in Turkey HPFABRICS, Inc has selected Forsyth County for a new production and product development facility, creating 260 jobs over three years, Gov. Roy Cooper announced.

North Carolina offers the skilled workforce companies need to succeed, Cooper said in a news release. The specialized experience their workers bring to the table is known around the world, and that stellar reputation played an important role in the company’s decision to come to their state.

The company, a manufacturer of raw fabrics, plans to invest $1.1 million over the next two years in a plant in Winston-Salem that formerly housed Microfibres, a company no longer operating in the city.

Microfibres, which produced fabrics for the furniture industry, went bankrupt last year, closing the Winston-Salem plant along with others in Rhode Island and Mississippi.

The state and Winston-Salem City Council have approved tax incentives for the project.

HPFabrics president Rafet Tukek said that Winston-Salem development officials the company would spend nearly $4 million to upgrade a closed textile plant in the city. He said that the manufacturing plant will strengthen trade between the United States and Turkey.

Raft Tukek, who formed HPFabrics in February, spent $5.92 million to purchase the Winston-Salem plant on Kimwell Drive and its assets. The startup,
HPFabrics Inc., would invest $3.85 million over five years in the project.

Tukek said that Winston-Salem economic development officials the average annual salary for the local jobs would be about $30,000, plus benefits. Tukek has more than 1,100 employees and three plants in Istanbul, makes $140 million in annual revenue.