Hanes
John Wesley Hanes' brother Pleasant H. Hanes founded the P.H. Hanes Knitting Company in 1901. The brothers previously operated a tobacco manufacturing business, that they sold to R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company in 1900. The P.H. Hanes Knitting Company merged with Hanes Hosiery in 1965. The P.H. Hanes Knitting Company complex was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. Consolidated Foods (later renamed Sara Lee) announced its purchase of Hanes in 1978.
Nilit
In 1996, Sara Lee Hosiery and NILIT signed a joint venture (today named H.N.F. Ltd – Hanesbrands Nilit Fibers) to produce nylon 6.6 POY yarns for the Hanesbrands apparel line in NILIT's Israeli manufacturing facility. In 2006, Hanesbrands was spun off from Sara Lee to become a standalone, publicly held company.