Godfrey Hirst Carpets is the largest manufacturer and exporter of residential and commercial

carpet A carpet is a textile floor covering typically consisting of an upper layer of pile attached to a backing. The pile was traditionally made from wool, but since the 20th century synthetic fibers such as polypropylene, nylon, or polyester hav ...

s in Australasia. The business was founded in 1888 in

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River, ...

, Victoria, Australia, by Godfrey Hirst, an English immigrant from Meltham, West Yorkshire, England. His Excelsior Mill, on the north bank of the Barwon River, manufactured various

wool Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool. As ...

textiles Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...

until it was sold in the 1966, continuing in operation as Godfrey Hirst Carpets. Godfrey Hirst acquired

Feltex Carpets Feltex Carpets (originally Felt and Textiles Limited) is a manufacturer of residential and commercial carpets. The company began its manufacturing operations in Australia in 1921, as Felt and Textiles of Australia Ltd. The company was publicly ...

of New Zealand as an ongoing concern in 2006. Godfrey Hirst Carpets has production plants in Victoria, Australia and New Zealand. It also has offices in the United States and Singapore, and exports throughout Southeast Asia, Japan, USA, the Middle East and other world markets. The company produces several brands of carpet products for residential and commercial markets. It has also expanded into hard flooring, including timber, laminate and other surfaces. In early 2017, it was reported that the investment bank, Greenhill, was seeking a buyer for the company, which was majority owned by the McKendrick family. The business had $427.8 million annual revenue and earnings worth $55.9 million. On 20 November 2017,

Mohawk Industries Mohawk Industries is an American flooring manufacturer based in Calhoun, Georgia, United States. Mohawk produces floor covering products for residential and commercial applications in North America and residential applications in Europe. The comp ...

, Inc., announced they had "agreed to acquire Godfrey Hirst Group". The transaction was expected to be "completed during the first half of 2018".

Notes

External links

Official Commercial Carpet & Flooring website

Official Residential Carpet & Flooring website
{{DISPLAYTITLE:Godfrey Hirst Carpets Australian companies established in 1888 Textile companies of Australia Carpet manufacturing companies