Investments by Canadian Company Creating US Jobs – The Herald | HeraldOnline.com (press release)

WASHINGTON — Michael Penner, the president and CEO of the Richelieu Group, a Canadian legwear company, will share his company’s story of U.S. investment and job creation at a White House roundtable discussion today. President Obama, with Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker, Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett, and National Economic Council Director Jeff Zients, is hosting the roundtable with companies that have recently chosen to invest in the United States to discuss the reasons for their investments and what we can do to bring even more job-creating investment to the United States.

“I am honored to be invited to the White House to tell Richelieu’s story. We invested in the U.S. to have access to the biggest market in the world, an incredible workforce and important export opportunities,” noted Mr. Penner. “But we didn’t do this alone. Our story is really a story of public-private partnership and cross-border cooperation. Working with other private sector companies like Walmart and the U.S. government through SelectUSA, we have been able to turn around a venerable player in the North American sock industry in three short years, creating jobs and increasing sales.”

Richelieu, the maker of brands such as Peds, Medi-Peds and Growing Socks, was originally founded in Sorel, Québec in 1934. In 2011, Richelieu invested $ 7 million to rescue International Legwear Group (ILG), a failing sock company based in Burke County, North Carolina – an area particularly hard hit by the recession and offshoring. Within 10 days of ILG’s announcing its liquidation, Richelieu re-hired workers that had been laid off and saved the company’s ongoing accounts. Today, the business is thriving. The work force has nearly doubled in size and sales have quadrupled, supporting the relaunch of Peds and Medi-Peds in the United States and internationally.

Now, as a result of a multi-year commitment from Walmart and with the support of SelectUSA, a federal initiative to promote and facilitate investment in the United States, Richelieu has decided to invest an additional $24 million to open a new state-of-the-art U.S. facility that will re-shore production and ultimately create more than 200 new jobs. The new facility will manufacture socks to be sold across the country, as well as in Canada, Mexico and South Korea.

“The Obama administration has set the framework, and Walmart has invested in American pride,” added Mr. Penner. “Our success is testament to the talent and pride of the American workforce and particularly to the women and men who work at our facility in Hildebran, North Carolina. This is one example of the government and the private sector working together to the benefit of all Americans.”

Richelieu, founded in 1934, is a complete legwear company that produces and sells its diverse and high quality product lines all over the world. It has become the industry leader through its innovation and best brand practices. Richelieu’s brands include Peds, Medi-Peds, Growing Socks, and Endur. Richelieu remains at the top of its industry, ensuring that the company is always the leader in new developments in technology, marketing, and manufacturing.