Welcome to TH Mills
The Beginning
TH Mills has a 67 year history of manufacturing top quality, industry leading sock products in the USA. The company, founded by the Thorneburg family in 1953 and located in Statesville, North Carolina, began as a contract manufacturer making socks for the US Military and private label brands such as Izod®, FootJoy® and Justin Boot®.
Thorlos Foot Protection
In 1978, TH Mills introduced the Thorlos® brand which was the first sport and activity-specific sock brand: Running and Tennis socks being the original products. TH Mills was granted multiple patents on the variable density terry padding as a way of providing greater foot protection, foot comfort and a better fitting sock. The Thorlos brand was built on the consumer experience resulting from this innovative knitting technology. This launched the company and the brand on a 40 year mission to provide preventive and therapeutic sock product solutions for foot protection, comfort and foot health issues.
Benefits Proven in Clinical Research
The patented fabric used in Thorlos was the subject of 8 peer reviewed, 3rd party published clinical studies that showed the fabric to significantly reduce friction blisters, pressure and pain, and also to move moisture better than normal socks. To this day, no other sock product has published this type of clinical evidence supporting their product claims. Today TH Mills manufactures sock products for more than 2 dozen different activities in the sports, work, leisure and therapeutic footwear categories.
Experia High Performance
More recently, TH Mills introduced the Experia® performance running and sports sock brand in 2009. Experia combines much higher needle count (thinner) variable density padding with high tech fiber technology to produce sock products that offer a high level of support, are extremely light weight and offer a high level of moisture management benefits. Experia has become one of the largest selling running socks of all time.
Research Foundation
TH Mills has spent thousands of hours researching all the different activities that we make sock products for and we have a substantial library of research that spans the spectrum from the foot biomechanics of a runner to the critical foot health needs of a diabetic. Research has been a foundation of our product development and innovation process and this research has helped validate our product’s design and performance. Ultimately however it is the testimonials from our millions of bonded loyal consumers that is the true validation of our products.
World-Class Engineering
TH Mills has extensive sock design and knitting capabilities. We have the ability to knit multiple levels of padding and multiple levels of density of fiber. Our extensive yarn library and resources combined with our knitting capabilities give us the ability to design and manufacture the highest level of engineered performance sock products in the world.
Recognized by Sporting Goods Hall of Fame
TH Mills has received numerous patents for sock design and innovation and we have received numerous awards for our contributions to the hosiery industry and to foot health. In 2015, Thorlos inventor Jim Thorneburg was inducted into the National Sporting Goods Hall of Fame for his contributions to the sporting goods industry.
Invitation to Co-Creation
Our pride and skill in carrying on the great tradition of “Master Sock Engineers” is now available to you. We are absolutely committed to earning your complete trust for the years to come. Whether you are looking for an additional source for an existing product, looking to improve a product’s consumer reviews or wanting to break new ground on what a sock can be, please consider us for your next project.
Our goal is to be the recognized source that brands, retailers and entrepreneurs turn to for a real edge for their most important sock-wear research, development, and production needs.
Our History
Pre 1950
Family members learn sock making supplementing their income after WWII
Pre 1950
1953
Lewis and Mattie Thorneburg start making socks for the military
1963
Make first private-label socks for Izod, FootJoy and Justin Boot
1963
1963
U.S. Patent awarded for "Roll-Top" sock
1978
Thorlos "foot protection" brand introduced
1978
1978
U.S. Patent awarded for "Shock Absorber Cushions"
1978
Creates world's first "running sock"; 30+ activity-specific designs follow
1978
1989 thru 1995
Peer-reviewed clinical research shows significant benefits of engineered fiber, padding and unique structure
2009
Experia "high performance" brand introduced
2009
Present
Brands spun out to licensing company. Mill makes strategic shift to serve Private-Label needs; continues to make Thorlos and Experia