Tom James Company will take over Rochester Tailored Clothing factory

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — It’s a new era for the Rochester Tailored Clothing factory. A month after Hickey Freeman revealed that its suits would no longer be made in Rochester, the Tom James Company announced its plans to buy the factory.

The Tom James Company, the largest U.S maker of custom clothing, said on Tuesday that the purchase would maintain the nearly 200 union employees at the factory. The company also plans to add up to new 45 jobs over the next five years.

“Tom James remains firmly committed to preserving, and enhancing, the art of garment-making in the United States. We know of no workforce more qualified to further this mission than the men and women of Rochester Tailored Clothing,” said a statement Todd Browne, CEO of Tom James.

Ever since June 1, all clothing made at the factory needed to be sold under the Rochester Tailored Clothing brand. That’s because Hickey Freeman, which made its suits in Rochester for more than a century, moved its production to Mexico.

The Hickey Freeman line was licensed to the factory in Rochester. That license now no longer exists after financial negotiations broke down.

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