Video above: Little River Sock Mill produces their socks with organic cotton in Fort Payne, Alabama.
FORT PAYNE, Ala. – With temperatures dropping and fall weather approaching, Alabamians have finally been getting out their sweaters and warm socks. Martha Stewart, however, finds one Alabama company above the rest for helping people in the Yellowhammer State get ready for Autumn. As part of her 2015 American Made Awards, Martha Stewart spotlighted Alabama’s Little River Sock Mill.
Located in Fort Payne, Ala., the Little River Sock Mill has been manufacturing socks for almost 25 years. Gina Locklear, owner and founder of the Little River Sock Mill, says that the process of producing socks at Little River Sock Mill is intricate, and it results in their products being known for their high quality.
“We’re a family business, and we work together every day to make a product we believe in. We make every sock ourselves, handling every step of the process, from design to manufacture to packaging, which is almost unheard of in the sock business,” said Locklear. “Since we produce our socks in small batches in a space that is steps from my office, our socks’ quality is exceptional, and this is what we’re known for.”
The Martha Stewart American Made Awards “spotlights the maker, supports the local, and celebrates the handmade.” Martha Stewart created these awards to honor and celebrate entrepreneurs and their dedication to create quality American made products.
In the spotlight of Little River Sock Mill for the 2015 American Made Awards, Locklear was asked to explain what “American made” means to her, and her answer is pretty remarkable.
“If I had been asked this question in 1991, I would have thought of my parents and said that American Made means the American dream. As a kid, I remember watching Mom and Dad work in the mill and make socks themselves with only one or two other employees. In the beginning, my dad would stay at the mill making socks until midnight, and then start again around 5:30 a.m. the next day. They did this because they knew if they worked hard, it would pay off and one day become a successful business,” said Locklear.
“Today, when I think about our business and how things have changed for us since manufacturing shifted overseas in the early 2000s, American Made makes me think of perseverance and the hope that, one day soon, being made in America will be as important to all Americans as it is to us.”
For more information about Little River Sock Mill, visit their website at littleriversockmill.com.
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