History

Milco was started in the Lower East Side of Manhattan in March 1922 by Solomon and Marco Mitrani who emigrated to the United States from Turkey after World War I. Back then the name of the company was "Mitrani Company MFRs of Embroideries Infants Wear a Specialty." Solomon and Marco received the fabric, cut and sewed garments in their small store front for six days. On Sundays the "Push Cart" vendors would come and buy the production produced that week. Back then the cutting tables were also makeshift beds and home was a place you visited mostly on Sunday afternoons.

As their success grew and doing business in New York was becoming expensive the brothers decided that it may be time to open a factory outside New York. That was in 1930. Around that time small towns in Pennsylvania started to advertise in New York newspapers that skilled sewing labor was available in Pennsylvania with towns subsidizing companies that moved there with tax incentives, low interest loans for companies that could provide steady work for this depressed area. Solomon and Marco moved to the Susquehanna Valley of Pennsylvania in 1931. First they opened a factory in Berwick and then in Bloomsburg. These were small rural communities where the wives of farmers worked to help bring income to the families especially during the winter. The Company flourished and the name changed to Milco which stands for "Mitrani Lingerie Company".

During World War II Milco put its production capabilities to work for the war effort. Nylon was starting to get used and Marco developed techniques to efficiently cut and sew this new material. More importantly the people of Milco developed parachutes that allowed Allied Aircraft to do low flying missions, drop their ordinance with the parachute attached which allowed the plane enough time to get out of harms way from the ensuing explosion.

After the war the Brothers used their knowledge of handling nylon to grow and produce women’s panties and sleepwear. They also bought some of the first Tricot Knitting Machines and later decided to become completely vertical by building a dye house, thread making (throwing) facility as well as elastic manufacturing, embroidery, boxes and cartons. The operation became completely vertical and integrated.

Over the years the face of Milco has changed but not its soul. Today all the sewing is done in factories in Mexico, El Salvador, Bulgaria, Turkey, Vietnam and China. The tricot knitting operation and the dye house is still located in Bloomsburg Pennsylvania. The fabric division services products for home furnishings, health care, athletic apparel, intimate apparel, and industrial markets. Our garment division services women’s sleepwear and panties as well as men’s and women’s activewear. All our products are shipped from our two distribution centers in Bloomsburg. We also ship garments on an FOB or LDP basis.