Hidden Gems: Meet Tate Mayo of Mayo Mills

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tate Mayo

Hi Tate, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Our Great grandfather, Columbus Washington Mayo Jr. bought a textile company that was going out of business in 1932. It had a dirt floor.

Once our grandfather, Columbus Washington Mayo III (everyone knew him as Lum) completed college at NC State with a degree in textiles he came home to run Mayo Knitting Mill. He built the business and expanded it into a new factory. Within ten years he was able to expand the business to 4 buildings.

Our father Bryan and his older brother C.W. IV came home from NC State in the 1980s and also worked the mill. At our highest point we had 450 employees. They worked 7 days a week, 365 days a year with two weeks of vacation over the July 4th and Christmas holidays.

Then came NAFTA. In our lifetimes we saw a once filled parking lot dwindle to the 30 employees Mayo Knitting Mill has today. The textile mills that once lined small towns all over North Carolina have closed. There were about 10 textile companies in Edgecombe County at one point and today we are the last one standing.

After graduating from NC State in 2016 with a degree in Agricultural Science (Tate Mayo) I stuck around Raleigh for a year managing 42nd Street Oyster Bar until I was ready to move home in April of 2018. With the mill a shell of its former self, there was no job waiting for me at the mill. I designed septic systems with the county, grew hemp transplants and worked on the family farm.

I believed and still believe that there is hope and promise in what my family does at the mill if we just made a brand of our own. There is no reason why we can’t sell what we once sold to the likes of Tommy Hilfiger, Hanes, Champion, Under Armor and many other well-known retail brands if we just made it our own.

Our first attempt was creating a brand called Conference Colors. Conference Colors had limited success and after a year we pivoted to calling ourselves America’s Socks. After another year we still hadn’t had much success. Then came COVID.

After starting an Agricultural Leadership Program that NC State and The North Carolina Tobacco Trust Fund Commission put on it became apparent that we needed to change course yet again. Through the program I met Julius Tillery who has a company called Black Cotton. He uses the cotton from his family’s farm to make t-shirts and other cotton-related products.

This is when it occurred that we could do the same with socks. Using Hill Spinning Company in Thomasville North Carolina, we took the highest quality cotton that we grow our family farm and turned it into yarn. The yarn we turned into socks. In order to better make our brand our own we pivoted for a third time and started Mayo Mills.

While our operation of Mayo Mills is separate from Mayo Knitting Mill they are both operated in the same building. Using the expertise that our employees have developed over almost 100 years we have been able to craft socks with 100% US-sourced materials 100% in the United States.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has been a winding road. We have had to pivot our brand three times in order to gain traction. With it being a family business we always get along and agree with each other.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
We make socks in the North Carolina with materials 100% sources from the United States. We are very proud of what we do and eternally grateful to the people that have supported and continue to support us.

Our family’s business has made socks for everyone from George H.W. Bush to NASA. There is nothing that we can’t knit. From newborn socks to men’s size 20, we can make any and everything that you can dream up to put on your foot.

We also have the ability to make custom socks and have them to you within 2 weeks.

What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
We are homegrown through and through. From the cotton that we grow on our family’s farm to the polyester and body yarns that we use from Unifi, also a North Carolina company. Our products are as American as you can get

Pricing:

• $15.00

Contact Info:

• Website: https://Mayomills.com
• Instagram: @mayo_mills
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/themayomills