| HomTex, Inc.: Local company grows despite weak economy |
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In spite of current economic conditions forcing many companies to downsize and even to close their doors, certain businesses seem to be flourishing and even exhibiting logic-defying growth. One such company is Cullman County's HomTex. A recent Chamber of Commerce Existing Industry tour of HomTex revealed a company that is far from rolling over. Indeed, HomTex seems poised to make the leap into the global marketplace and make a name for itself through a combination of hard work, clever design and good old-fashioned customer service. Specializing in the manufacture of bed linens, HomTex was founded in 1988 by company President Jerry Wootten, who anecdotally described his early operation as "nine people in a basement." From those humble beginnings, HomTex has grown into its own, now occupying some 92,000 square-feet of building space and boasting an employee roster of 150. |
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| "We've come a long way," said Wootten. "We started making sheets from remnants out of necessity in the mid-80s. We were originally located at Spring Hill. We moved to our current location in 1991, and we've been growing since." HomTex, Inc. is located between West Point and Battleground on Alabama Highway 157. | |
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"We are fortunate to have a county
government
-- Randall Shedd, |
HomTex will soon take that growth to a new level. On November 26, 2001,
the Cullman County Commission approved a tax abatement and incentive
package that will aid in beginning a massive expansion and restructuring
project that will add a distribution center to the company's existing
buildings. Construction is set to begin during the spring and summer of
2002 and the planned
expansion is expected to add between 30,000 - 50,000 square feet. The
expansion will also bring an estimated 50 jobs to the area in coming
months. "We are fortunate to have a county government that is pro-business," said Randall Shedd, Director of Cullman County Economic Development. "Chairman Norman Tucker, Commissioner Robert Harbison and Commissioner Faye Whisenant |
 Jeannie Long, Plant Manager for HomTex, addresses the topic of product packaging during the Chamber of Commerce tour. |
established our
policy to do as much or more for a local existing industry as we do to
recruit a new industry and I think that is a good policy. "Commissioner Harbison has worked hard on providing the necessary road improvements to enhance this expansion and Chairman Tucker and Commissioner Whisenant did everything they were asked to do to help this project." One of the reasons behind the new project is the expansion of the DreamFit product line, the brand name that Wootten believes will set HomTex apart from other textile manufacturers in the bed linen industry. |
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Contract sewing and labor are a big portion of the services that HomTex provides, and, according to Wooten, the company has made considerable profits from those endeavors in the past. The future, however, belongs to DreamFit. |
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| The DreamFit line is a sheet set
that centers around the strengths of a specially-designed patented fitted
sheet. Elastic bands hold the sheet in place and a tougher, double-stitched
two-ply elastic fitting surrounds the sheet's edge. Both features were
designed to address the problem of fitted sheets that are prone to
slipping off of mattresses. DreamFit flat sheets are also quite different
from conventional bed linens in that they are purposely oversized to allow
their edges to be easily tucked under the mattress for a neater
appearance. "All of our growth is coming from DreamFit," Wootten said. "You just can't get these sheets off of a bed ... no matter what you do. If you're a restless sleeper, they're invaluable." HomTex produces, on average, some 30,000-40,000 sheet sets per week. DreamFit is marketed mainly to 'sleep shops', mattress and furniture stores. |
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| "What we want to do is change the point of
destination for shopping for these products to the furniture stores,"
Wootten said. "It makes sense ... what better place to buy sheets than
from the place you buy the mattress?" "We're not selling to department stores; they would control our destiny. We want to develop a strong enough brand that we can market our own product and be a major vendor." Customer service is another major reason Wootten believes his company will continue to have increased success in the marketplace. |
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 Cullman County Economic Development Director Randall Shedd and county Industrial Development Board member Gerald Sims look on as Wootten explains the origins of HomTex. |
"We're currently working with Fed Ex and UPS on our shipping. We want
to be as efficient as possible and we're going to bring a level of
customer service to an industry that is not used to it," Wootten said.
"With the new distribution center, we expect to hold between 50,000
and 60,000 sheet sets for next-day delivery." According to Wootten, such commitment to customer service has already paid off. He noted that HomTex recently had its largest single order in history, a $500,000 order that shipped the day prior to the Chamber tour. Another customer was so pleased by the week-early arrival of DreamFit sheets that HomTex promptly received an additional $25,000 order. |
| In addition to the projected expansion, there have been many other developments at HomTex in recent years, most of which were made possible by the success of the DreamFit line. | |
 Terri Lavender of Cullman Regional Medical Center, Jason Wright of the North Alabama Industrial Development Association, and Jerry Scott of Bryan Business Solutions enjoy the Chamber tour of HomTex. |
"We're starting to get more into
automation," Wootten said. "In the beginning, we were pretty
inefficient. We've come a long way since then. In two or three years, our
industry will turn around and look at us and say: 'Where did they
come from?' " One of the more impressive pieces of automation at HomTex is the ETON Unit Production System. ETON is a computerized overhead conveyor system that moves the hanging sheets from one workstation to another, reducing employee downtime from transporting products between stations. "We are growing, and I am very proud of what we have here," Wootten said. "I am very proud that we are a part of Cullman County." |
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Following the tour of the HomTex facility,
Chamber of Commerce Executive Vice-President Alan Arnett described HomTex
as a "very impressive" operation. |
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