Seventeen TIAA members/guests registered for the Hatco Factory Tour on January 17 and it was as fabulous as their hats! We were welcomed by one of Hatco's VPs and learned that all the Stetson and Resistol hats are made in the USA – in Texas, with one factory in Longview and one in Garland – and then shipped to distributors all over the world. We passed around a top-of-the-line (containing chinchilla fur), custom-made hat that was so soft. Hats like that are worn by rodeo and screen stars and cost $5,000+ (depending on how much bling they want on the hat band!) Hats are not commonly worn these days but Hatco still produces between 500,000 and 1,000,000 hats each year to please their customers and have 3,200 models and colors available – in felt or straw. They employ approximately 225 workers – some workers, like at TI, are multi-generational and some have been there over 40 years. As usual, we maintained the TIAA custom of eating-our-way-across-Texas and Dos Banderos in Garland was the winner this time as we joined one of our members in celebrating his 92nd birthday!
Hatco Factory – Great Tour!
