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Levi’s distribution plant in Madison County to close. See how many will lose jobs

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8 months ago

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Levi’s distribution plant in Madison County to close. See how many will lose jobs

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After more than 40 years in Madison County, the Levi’s Distribution Center on Denim Way in Gluckstadt near Canton will be closing. More than 450 people could lose their jobs, officials confirmed.

A new plant was recently built in Kentucky and the company plans to move most of the Mississippi operations to the Bluegrass State, Levi’s corporate office confirmed.

“As Levi Strauss & Co. looks to the future, we have been in the process of reviewing our global distribution network to identify where changes are needed to provide the best consumer experience possible,” Levi’s told the Clarion Ledger Thursday in a statement. “We ultimately came to the conclusion that due to accelerating operational costs and infrastructure needs we must wind down operations at the Canton distribution center. This is not a decision we take lightly. The workers in the Canton distribution center played a large part in making Levi Strauss & Co. the company it is today. As we finalize plans and timelines, we promise to do all we can to do right by our employees and the community.”

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Levi’s had not given local officials this information before this announcement, but Madison County Economic Development Director Joey Deason said his group will deal with the fallout.

“It is very unfortunate that Levi’s is closing after more than 40 years in the marketplace,” Deason said. “They have been great corporate citizens for all of that time. Obviously, we will work with the company and help the employees find new jobs. We will continue to reach out to Levi corporate.”

While there is no timeline for the closure, Levi’s is required to give local and state officials at least 60 days notice before they can lay off more than 100 people.

“I am confident with the recent announcements of Amazon and Clark Beveridge and some of our other Industries starting up, that we will be able to work with the employees and help them find other opportunities,” Deason said. “We will reach out and coordinate between us, Mississippi Department of Employment Securities and Levi’s to put together a plan and strategy and see if there is an end date in mind.”

This comes on the heels of several economic development successes for Madison County.

Clark Beverage Group, which is a distributor of beverages such as Coca-Cola, will add 30 new jobs with a $100 million expansion in Madison County that is underway.

The company will be closing its Jackson location as part of the expansion, but the transition won’t be completed until 2025. All of the more than 300 employees who currently work in the Jackson plant will have the opportunity to move and work in the Madison plant.

Amazon Web Services made major news in January when it announced it will occupy two Madison County locations for the historic buildout for hyperscale development centers that could create up to 1,000 jobs.

Mississippi lawmakers completed a $259 million incentive package for the Amazon Web Services $10 billion project in Canton and Madison County.  

Gov. Tate Reeves said the project represents the single largest corporate capital investment in state history. Amazon Web Services will build two sites, one a 927-acre site and the other a 786-acre site for two hyperscale data centers.

Ross Reily can be reached by email at rreily@gannett.com or 601-573-2952. You can follow him on Twitter @GreenOkra1.

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