The denim specialist will close its Jiaxing operation by end-2026, sharpening its manufacturing footprint around Mexico as trade shifts, sourcing strategies and cost pressures reshape global denim production.
Cone Denim will exit denim manufacturing in China by the end of 2026 and strengthen its manufacturing platform in Mexico, in a significant restructuring of one of the industry’s best-known global denim suppliers.
The company said the decision followed a review of the global denim market, customer sourcing requirements, manufacturing economics and its long-term strategy. Changing trade patterns, geopolitical developments, cost pressures and supply-chain considerations have increasingly challenged the competitiveness of its Chinese operation.
Jiaxing chapter closes
Cone Denim’s Jiaxing mill has operated since 2007 as a vertically integrated facility producing fabrics from 5.5 oz to 16 oz, including selvedge denim.
Cone said it will work with customers to maintain short-term fabric continuity and help them transition future sourcing requirements before the Chinese operation closes.
The move represents a marked change from Cone’s previously broad manufacturing network. In 2025, Pakistan-based Artistic Milliners announced an agreement to acquire a majority stake in Cone Denim from Elevate Textiles, creating a global platform intended to combine Cone’s fabric operations with garment manufacturing and finishing capabilities.
Mexico becomes the production centre
Going forward, Cone will concentrate denim manufacturing around its established Mexican operations.
Its Parras mill, operating since 1995, is vertically integrated from raw cotton through finished fabric. The Yecapixtla facility, opened in 1998, processes yarn through finished denim and also manufactures pocketing fabrics and provides greige weaving capacity.
Mexico offers an increasingly strategic location for serving North American brands because of geographic proximity, shorter supply chains and regional trade integration.
Denim sourcing footprint tightens
For buyers, the restructuring is another indication that global denim capacity is being repositioned around speed, regionalisation and supply-chain resilience, rather than manufacturing cost alone.
For competing Asian denim mills, Cone’s China withdrawal potentially creates additional sourcing opportunities, but also raises the competitive importance of lead time, vertical integration and regional customer service.
The key issue to watch is how much Jiaxing volume migrates to Mexico and how Cone integrates the reconfigured manufacturing footprint with the broader capabilities envisioned through its partnership with Artistic Milliners.
