Hathaway officials optimistic

WATERVILLE – The leader of a nonprofit foundation that promotes the purchase of American-made products met with C.F. Hathaway Co. workers Thursday to outline plans for purchasing the troubled shirt factory.

Joel D. Joseph, chairman of the USA Foundation, told workers that he and company officials are close to a deal.

“We’ve come to a general agreement,” he said. “We’ve just got a few sticking points to work out, but we’re doing well.”

The foundation would not own Hathaway directly. Instead, the foundation would provide financial backing and support through a new corporation, Waterville Shirt Co. Inc., Joseph said.

Day-to-day operations would fall on the current Hathaway management, including Donald J. Sappington, chief executive officer, who would be overseen by a board of directors, Joseph said.

The USA Foundation decided to come to Hathaway’s rescue after Joseph read an article about Hathaway’s plight in The Washington Post. He discovered that Hathaway is the last domestic shirt manufacturer in the United States and is being priced out of the market by low-cost imports.

“I decided, we can’t let that happen,” Joseph said. “I think if this country doesn’t manufacture things, we’re doomed.”

Plans for the new corporation are ambitious, and include renewing the Lady Hathaway line, manufacturing children’s apparel, and opening retail outlets up and down the East Coast, Joseph said.

The famous Hathaway brand name and logos will be preserved, Joseph said.

“They’re great shirts,” said Joseph, who wore a 6-year-old Hathaway shirt when he met with workers Thursday. “It’s the oldest trade name in the United States, and I think it has to be preserved.”

The future of the 165-year-old shirt maker has been in doubt for years. On March 18, the company’s owner, Windsong Alliance Group, announced plans to shut down the factory at the end of June.

Wal-Mart extended a contract with Hathaway, allowing the company to stay open at least through September. The company is also pursuing contracts including a five-year deal with the Air Force.

Joseph said he expects the purchase agreement will be signed by the time Hathaway workers return from a three-week summer shutdown that begins Monday.

If the foundation signs a purchase deal with Hathaway, it will be the first time the organization has taken such a radical step to preserve an American manufacturer, Joseph said.