Woman seeks to relaunch Toluca garment maker in Minonk

Woman seeks to relaunch Toluca garment maker in Minonk
Bloomington Pantagraph,  USA

MINONK — About 80 people lost their jobs last fall when the Toluca Garment Co. closed its doors. Soon, former workers may be able to land work at the new Toluca Tailoring Co.

Company President Valerie Lilley hopes to revive the local clothing industry when she opens her business in Minonk in the former Just Stuff Antiques building, 551 N. Chestnut St. Initially, she plans to hire 15 employees, but hopes that number will grow with time.

The business will specialize in high-end, custom-made suits, as the Toluca factory did. Customers include dealers who take orders from tailors. Lilley hopes the company will earn $1 million by 2014.

“Just listening to her business plan is very encouraging,” said Minonk Mayor Bill Koos. “It calls for growth and it shows commitment to the city and the building.”

Lilley chose to locate in Minonk because she couldn’t find a large enough building in Toluca. She hopes to open within a month.

The city recently approved a $20,000 loan for the business from its revolving loan fund. Minonk also plans to offer other incentives because the business will be located in a tax increment financing district. In a TIF district, some property tax money can be diverted for economic development uses.

Lilley also received loans from Tazewell and Woodford counties.

She got the idea for the business last September, when the Toluca factory closed after 60 years in business. At its heyday in the 1990s, Toluca Garment employed about 125 people.

“Some friends of mine said, ‘You’ve got to do something,’” she said. “And the pieces just fell into place. But we are really starting from scratch.”

Lilley purchased equipment from the former Toluca business. Locating in the 18,000-square-foot former antique store will also allow the business to be run efficiently.

“The beautiful thing about a new building is that we can set things up the way they should be,” she said.

Lilley also plans to move her Peoria-based business, Sofi’s Stitches, to the Minonk site by November. The costume business has 35 seasonal employees.

“This is a building that could have easily fallen into disrepair,” the mayor said, adding the location had been vacant at least three years. “This will be just another great addition to our downtown area.”

And he’s excited about the prospect of new jobs.

“This spring we lost jobs when the cheese factory closed,” he said, referring to Zivney Cheese. “This gives us more jobs and additional people downtown on a regular basis.”

The company is holding a job fair from 5 to 7 p.m. tonight at the Chestnut Street location.

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