Good Jeans
At Cone Denim, Caitlyn Holt ’12, ’13 MR has helped solve the denim dilemma — from comfort to sustainability.
By David Menconi
Caitlyn Holt ’12, ’13 mr studied textiles all over the world during her time at NC State — until it took her right back home. After she ran out of money in Hong Kong, finances dictated that Holt spend her next summer internship at home in Greensboro, N.C. That led her to Cone Denim, among the nation’s largest denim manufacturers.
She came home from her first day on the job telling her family she’d work there forever. “That was 2011,” Holt says. “And 13 years later, I’m still here.”
The third generation of her family to work for Cone, Holt currently serves as director of product and business innovation, sustainability and marketing. “I’m in touch with a lot of different things, like looking at what’s coming in three to five years, new innovations, how to make our plants more efficient and sustainable,” Holt says.
Cone’s three plants, located in Mexico and China, produce up to 100 million yards of fabric annually (a pair of jeans takes about a yard and a half of denim). The Kimes Ranch brand uses solely Cone fabric in its jeans, and the company also sells material to brands including Levi’s, Wrangler and Lee.
In recent years, denim has changed dramatically with the rise of stretchy material.
“Fifteen years ago, everybody started wearing leggings and workout shorts,” Holt says. “Denim had to make itself more comfortable. Old-school denim was stiff and heavy and worn-in for years. The new stretch fabric is comfortable as soon as you put it on.” Increased sustainability is also a major goal. Holt has overseen changes at Cone that decreased its water usage by more than 60%.
“‘Denim’ has been a dirty word for a long time because it uses so much water, so that’s a big focus,” Holt says. “We also responsibly source cotton so there’s traceability of our entire supply chain. And we’re getting into different kinds of apparel that use denim — blazers, skirts, dresses.”
And if you wondered, yes, Holt wears jeans to work. “The best work perk there is!” she says.
Photograph by Jerry Wolford and Scott Muthersbaugh, Perfecta Visuals.
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