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Home Sewn

In a clothing industry where overseas manufacturing is the norm, one Pennsylvania company has been steadily building its brand by quickly responding to customers' needs, consistently growing staff and business while finding innovative ways to be environmentally responsible and sustainable: FesslerUSA.

A one-stop shop for designers and retailers, FesslerUSA is one of the leading private knit-label producers in the nation. Not only does the company have a team that will help customers develop a design, it also provides domestic fabrics, cutting, knitting, sewing, brand consulting, and shipping. Family owned and operated since 1900, FesslerUSA produces more than 4 million women and children’s knit tops each year.

“We serve a very niche part of the market,” says VP of Sales and Marketing Brian Meck. “We’re one of the only [companies] in the country that are vertically integrated. We control the entire manufacturing process from start to finish.”

Over the past six years, FesslerUSA has grown an average of 15 percent annually. During that time, the company staff has increased from 200 to 285, says Meck. In the past year alone, FesslerUSA has added 25 new customers to the 100-plus total of high-end brands and retailers it serves. The company has not had a layoff in eight years--an uncommon feat in this industry, says Meck.

Among Fessler's famous clients are Urban Outfitters, Nordstrom and LA-based Michael Stars. So why do these major brands choose FesslerUSA over a cheaper company in China or Thailand? The fact that FesslerUSA provides a design support team and technical staff, eliminating the need for retailers and designers to have their own team, is one reason. The high quality of the product and the speed with which it is delivered are also major perks for the customer.

“We take a concept and have it on the shelf within 60 days,” Meck says, noting the contrast to the minimum six-month wait from overseas companies.

But the company’s growth in size and business may not be its greatest triumph in recent years. Not only does FesslerUSA use domestic fibers and fabrics, keeping the money flow in the U.S., it now provides fabrics made from organic cotton and sustainable fibers, such as bamboo and beech wood.

While the organic and sustainable fabrics can run 50 cents to a dollar or more per garment, the demand for this environmentally friendly product has been strong, says Meck. Over the past three years, more than 30 clients have begun using the organic material, and numerous requests come in daily for the company’s green fabrics.

And while these “green” efforts are commendable, the company’s largest and most ambitious effort at sustainability is currently in the works.

FesslerUSA recently bought a 150,000-square-foot facility in Deer Lake, Pa., where it will be consolidating all departments under one roof over the next six months (currently the company is scattered throughout three counties). The new facility will become one of the largest solar panel-powered buildings on the east coast.

In October, FesslerUSA secured state funding to help cover the facility’s roof and parking lot with solar panels that will generate enough electricity not only to be self-sustainable, but also to generate a surplus of energy the company can sell back to PPL.

Fessler's solar-powered facility, free from fossil fuel-dependence, will be fully functional by early 2010.