Historic textile mill near Charlotte closes second NC plant, laying off over 65
A historic yarn manufacturer based in Gastonia is shutting down another facility, this time in Davidson County, leaving more than 65 people without a job.
Parkdale Mills filed a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) report on April 9, notifying the state and employees that its factory in Lexington will close on June 7. Lexington is about 50 miles northeast of Charlotte. The state disclosed the report on Monday. Such notices are required by federal law during mass layoffs.
Due to the closure, 68 people will be laid off.
The closure and layoffs are due to increasing energy costs which have created an “unsustainable business model,” according to the report from Parkdale. It’s the same reason the century-old manufacturer announced layoffs earlier this year. In January, Parkdale Mills said it would be shuttering its Walnut Cove facility in Stokes County. The facility closed on March 13 and 72 people were laid off.
Parkdale officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday.
About Parkdale Mills
Parkdale was chartered by investors in Gastonia in 1916. Two years later, it opened its first plant in the city.
From there, it grew to be one of the world’s largest manufacturer of spun yarns. At one point, the company had 29 plants in the U.S., Mexico and South America, employing more than 4,500 workers, according to the Parkdale Mills website.
At the height of the pandemic, Parkdale received a federal contract to make millions of face masks. But in the past decade, Parkdale has closed numerous plants due to rising energy costs and foreign competition.
It shut down its Boonville plant in Yadkin County in 2018, which resulted in 63 layoffs. And the year before, 97 people were laid off at Parkdale’s Williamston plant in Martin County. In 2020, Parkdale shut down a Rowan County mill, laying off 94 workers. And in 2024, Parkdale’s Lee County plant closed resulting in 74 layoffs.
In the past eight years, Parkdale has laid off 468 workers in North Carolina.
This story was originally published April 13, 2026 at 12:34 PM.
