11 December 2017

Coats, the world's leading industrial thread manufacturer, has acquired Patrick Yarn Mill, a manufacturer of high-performance engineered yarns based in North Carolina, US. Patrick Yarn Mill specialises in cut-resistant and flame retardant yarns. It also produces yarns from recycled fibres marketed under its earthspun® trademarks and with its large solar installation promotes its earth friendly yarns as 'Spun by the Sun'.

Founded in 1963, Patrick Yarn Mill has 150 employees. In 2016, its annual sales were $36.5m. Patrick Yarn Mill's unique spinning competencies in engineered performance yarns offer an opportunity to expand Coats' existing Performance Materials portfolio as well as to extend its innovation capability. Coats will support Patrick Yarn Mill's expansion into high-growth markets by leveraging Coats' unrivalled geographic footprint, breadth of global customer relationships and strong corporate brand.

Rajiv Sharma, Group Chief Executive, Coats, said: 'Patrick Yarn Mill is an exciting acquisition that supports a key aspect of our growth strategy: to identify innovation synergies that build scale in high technology sectors. It is a dynamic, customer focused company and its unique spinning systems combined with our existing technology portfolio will provide a strong market offering. We will be able to draw upon our demonstrable track record of successfully integrating bolt-on companies following our acquisitions in 2016, particularly that of Gotex, another company in this space, which is performing well under our ownership.'

Gilbert Patrick, President, Patrick Yarn Mill, said: 'Patrick Yarn Mill becoming part of the Coats family creates many opportunities for both companies as there is a lot of synergy between our product offerings and technology. A key one is being able to leverage Coats' unrivalled global footprint and strong corporate brand to accelerate market growth, which will benefit not only Patrick Yarn Mill, but also our employees and our community. The opportunity to collaborate with a market leader in areas such as innovation and R&D is extremely exciting and very positive, not only for Patrick Yarn Mill's future but also for our customers' future.'

The acquisition of Patrick Yarn Mill follows the two highly successful acquisitions of 2016. Gotex, a Spanish company which designs and manufactures high-tech industrial yarns and tapes used in the telecommunications, energy and oil and gas sectors became part of Performance Materials. FRS, a UK based company which provides software solutions and expertise to improve operational efficiency and speed to market in apparel and footwear, became part of Coats Global Services.

This acquisition shows Coats' intent to grow via M&A in Performance Materials and Services, two areas of strategic priority.

ENDS

For more information contact:
Kristina Blissett, Head of Communications kristina.blissett@coats.com
T +44 (0)208 210 5084, M +44 (0)7714 539887

Notes to Editors

About Coats

Coats is the world's leading industrial thread manufacturer and a major player in the Americas textile crafts market. At home in some 60 countries, Coats employs 19,000 people across six continents. Revenues in 2016 were US$1.5bn.

Coats' pioneering history and innovative culture ensure the company leads the way around the world: providing complementary and value added products and services to the apparel and footwear industries; applying innovative techniques to develop high technology Performance Materials threads and yarns in areas such as automotive, composites and fibre optics; and extending the crafts offer into new markets and online.

Headquartered in the UK, Coats is a FTSE 250 listed company on the London Stock Exchange.

  • Each year we make enough thread to go into 8 billion pairs of jeans - that's one for every person on the planet
  • Every month Coats produces enough thread to stretch all the way to the sun
  • More than 450 million pairs of shoes are made every year using Coats' thread
  • More than 100 million car airbags are made using Coats' Performance Materials thread every year
  • In 1879 Thomas Edison used Coats' thread in his experiments to invent the light bulb
  • Our Red Heart knitting and crochet yarn brand has been named 'America's Most Recommended' by the Women's Choice Award for three years running
  • Our flame retardant Performance Materials threads can withstand temperatures as high as 1,000 degrees Celsius
  • Coats is the second largest supplier of zips to global brands

To find out more about Patrick Yarn Mill visit www.patrickyarns.com

Coats Group plc published this content on 11 December 2017 and is solely responsible for the information contained herein.
Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 11 December 2017 07:27:04 UTC.

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