Kraemer Textiles Inc. is a privately held American yarn manufacturing company founded in 1887, based in

Nazareth, Pennsylvania Nazareth is a borough in Northampton County, Pennsylvania. The borough's population was 6,053 at the 2020 census. Nazareth is part of the Lehigh Valley metropolitan area, which had a population of 861,899 and was the 68th most populous metropoli ...

. It produces its own

handicraft A handicraft, sometimes more precisely expressed as artisanal handicraft or handmade, is any of a wide variety of types of work where useful and decorative objects are made completely by one’s hand or by using only simple, non-automated re ...

yarns under the Kraemer Yarns brand, and spins natural and manmade fibers for carpets, industrial use, and home furnishings. It was one of the companies partnered with the

Ralph Lauren Corporation Ralph Lauren Corporation is an American publicly traded fashion company that was founded in 1967 by American fashion designer Ralph Lauren. The company is headquartered in New York City, producing products ranging from the mid-range to the luxur ...

to produce the distinctive outerwear for the

2014 Winter Olympics , ''Zharkie. Zimnie. Tvoi'') , nations = 88 , events = 98 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , athletes = 2,873 , opening = 7 February 2014 , closing = 23 February 2014 , opened_by = President Vladimir Putin , cauldron = , stadium = Fisht Olympic ...

team representing the United States. Kraemer Hosiery Mills was founded in 1887 by Henry Kraemer and became a leading women's

silk Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from the coc ...

hosiery Hosiery, also referred to as legwear, describes garments worn directly on the feet and legs. The term originated as the collective term for products of which a maker or seller is termed a hosier; and those products are also known generically as h ...

manufacturer. In 1907, the company was purchased by the Schmidt family, and ownership has remained in the family for multiple generations. The Kraemer name was retained as it was established in the marketplace, and became known as Kraemer Textiles. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, spinning machines were installed that produced synthetic yarns for clothing, drapes, and upholstery. Clients in the 1960s and 1970s included

Burlington Industries Burlington Industries, formerly Burlington Mills, is a diversified American fabric maker based in Greensboro, North Carolina. Founded by J. Spencer Love in Burlington, North Carolina in 1923, the company has operations in the United States, Mexi ...

and

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 ...

, and later military contracts. In the late 1980s, the company's business slowed as textile production fell in the United States due to overseas sourcing becoming less costly and therefore more desirable to buyers. In 1987, a plant was purchased in

Berks County, Pennsylvania Berks County ( Pennsylvania German: ''Barricks Kaundi'') is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 428,849. The county seat is Reading. The Schuylkill River, a tributary of the Delaware Ri ...

but the debt created by the purchase eventually led to the company having to file for

Chapter 11 bankruptcy Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, whe ...

. Over the years, production dropped from 300,000 pounds of yarn at its peak, to 50,000 per week in 2007 and annual revenues dropped from $20 million in 1997 to around $5 million in 2007. However, another source of revenue was introduced with the creation of the Kraemer Yarns handicraft lines in 2005, taking advantage of the increased nationwide interest in

crochet Crochet (; ) is a process of creating textiles by using a crochet hook to interlock loops of yarn, thread (yarn), thread, or strands of other materials. The name is derived from the French term ''crochet'', meaning 'hook'. Hooks can be made from ...

and

knitting Knitting is a method by which yarn is manipulated to create a textile, or fabric. It is used to create many types of garments. Knitting may be done by hand or by machine. Knitting creates stitches: loops of yarn in a row, either flat or i ...

. This was the first time the company created and manufactured its own brand of yarns versus providing products for other companies. Kraemer also appealed to home dyers by marketing a selection of undyed yarns composed of various blends of fibers such as kid

mohair Mohair (pronounced ) is a fabric or yarn made from the hair of the Angora goat. (This should not be confused with Angora wool, which is made from the fur of the Angora rabbit.) Both durable and resilient, mohair is notable for its high luster ...

, superwash

Merino The Merino is a breed or group of breeds of domestic sheep, characterised by very fine soft wool. It was established in Spain near the end of the Middle Ages, and was for several centuries kept as a strict Spanish monopoly; exports of the bree ...

wool,

organic cotton Organic cotton is generally defined as cotton that is grown organically in subtropical countries such as India, Turkey, China, and parts of the USA from non-genetically modified plants, and without the use of any synthetic agricultural chemicals ...

linen Linen () is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant. Linen is very strong, absorbent, and dries faster than cotton. Because of these properties, linen is comfortable to wear in hot weather and is valued for use in garments. It also ...

and

. The company joined with the Ralph Lauren Corporation in making the iconic sweaters for the US Olympic Team seen during the opening of the 2014 Winter Olympics. Previously, the Corporation received negative press when it was found to have sourced the clothing it supplied to the athletes in 2012 from China, so it vowed to source everything it produced for the 2014 Olympics from the US. Kraemer spun around 6,000 pounds of Merino wool yarn from a ranch in Oregon, which was then sent to a dyer in North Carolina. The yarn amounted to approximately one-fourth of a standard week's production at the mill. David Schmidt, the President of Kraemer Yarns, said he and his 50 employees were proud to have been a part of the production.

References

External links

Official website
*

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of the company, showing mill and Olympic clothing {{Decorative arts American brands Manufacturing companies established in 1887 Manufacturing companies of the United States Privately held companies based in Pennsylvania Textile companies of the United States Yarn