Derry's oldest shirt factory, the City Factory, is to close at the end of November with the loss of 197 jobs. Low-priced imports from Third World countries have been blamed.
Shirt-manufacturing started in the city-centre factory 150 years ago. The current owner, the Raelbrook Group, took over the operation 10 years ago.
The company's chairman, Mr Colin Deas, who broke the news to his employees yesterday afternoon, said it was the most difficult thing he had ever had to do in his business career.
"I spoke with the unions first and then I spoke with the workers. It has been a very emotional time. I can honestly say they received the news with a very quiet dignity and I was very touched by it.
"We cannot compete with products imported from the Third World countries.
"Our major customers are just not prepared to pay the prices that we are having to charge for production here in Northern Ireland, and the majority of our competitors are importing now and getting to a market place that we simply cannot compete in now.
"Our main customers are the high street retailers. We have been fighting against the odds for some time.
"The Industrial Development Board are preference shareholders in the company. We worked closely with them.
"It was only during the summer holidays, when two of my major customers just took their orders and put them straight out into importing direct, that left me with no choice but to close.
"That left me with space in the factory but with nothing to make," he said.