MONTREAL - Gildan Activewear Inc. has signed a deal to buy Phoenix Sanford LLC, the parent company of Frontier Yarns, for US$168 million.

Frontier is a producer of cotton, polyester and cotton blend yarns.

It has four facilities in North Carolina employing about 800 employees.

Gildan says it bought about 40 per cent of Frontier's production this year for textile manufacturing in Central America and the Caribbean.

The company says the acquisition of Frontier will allow it to build on its global vertically integrated supply chain.

Chief executive Glenn Chamandy says the acquisition broadens and complements Gildan's existing yarn capabilities and provides additional capacity to support long-term growth.