Amy Bircher Bruyn was only nine years old when she first walked through a textile factory.

Her family had just purchased National Dye Works, a dyeing and finishing company dating back to the 1940s. For most kids, a factory floor would have been intimidating. For Bruyn, it was a classroom.

“I was able to see all aspects of manufacturing dyed and finished fabrics,” she says. “To understand what it takes to get one yard of fabric out of a factory door in perfect shape without a problem. It was really such an incredible experience.”

Those early years taught her something that no business school could replicate. Every decision mattered. Quality was built step by step. And the care you put into really making something always showed in the finished product.

She’s been proving that ever since.

Solving the Problem No One Else Wanted to Touch

By 1997, the domestic textile industry was under enormous strain. Factory closures were accelerating, and global competition was reshaping the supply chain. 

Bruyn saw that disruption firsthand and founded MMI Textiles, a premier supplier of industrial and custom textiles for the medical, military, tactical and commercial industries. 

What began as a company serving six Midwestern states grew steadily into a much larger operation, reflecting both Bruyn’s entrepreneurial vision and the evolving needs of the textile marketplace. Over time, that growth included the opening of a manufacturing facility in Lenoir, North Carolina, and a 45,000-square-foot headquarters and distribution center in Brooklyn, Ohio.

She didn’t launch MMI Textiles with a grand blueprint. Bruyn launched with a strong work ethic, a willingness to listen and a stubborn belief that if you solve a real problem, the rest will follow.

“A lot of grit, perseverance, a lot of sleepless nights, a lot of hardship,” she says. “But also a lot of success, too, that was just doing some of the simplest things. Solve a problem. Just solve a problem.”

Nearly three decades later, that problem-solving mindset is still at the heart of everything MMI Textiles does.

Finding a Home at the Wilson College of Textiles

Bruyn attended West Virginia University, not NC State. But the Wilson College of Textiles had a way of finding her anyway.

Through decades in the industry, the college kept showing up: in conversations, in partnerships and in the caliber of graduates entering the workforce.

“I was blown away [by the Wilson College]. These kids get to learn in this environment. How could we not support this?”

When she finally visited in person, she walked away with one clear feeling.

“I was blown away,” she shares. “These kids get to learn in this environment. How could we not support this?”

That feeling turned into action, setting in motion a deeper relationship with the college that would eventually lead to philanthropy, mentorship and her service on the North Carolina Textile Foundation Board of Directors.

“From the moment Amy connected with the Wilson College of Textiles, it was clear that she understood both the urgency and the opportunity of our mission,” says Michael Ward, executive director of the North Carolina Textile Foundation, the college’s philanthropic arm.

“She brings a genuine commitment to opening doors for our students. Her service, philanthropy and mentorship are already making a meaningful impact on this college.”

In February 2024, Bruyn was named the Wilson College’s John W. Pope Industrialist in Residence, and she brought her firsthand industry expertise directly to students, faculty and staff for a day of meaningful conversation.

Over the next few years, her connection to the college only deepened. 

This March, Bruyn and MMI Textiles sponsored an industry tour for 17 students from the Wilson College of Textiles and West Virginia University.

With transportation, meals and lodging fully covered, the spring break trip gave students an inside look at North Carolina’s textile industry.

Visits centered on manufacturing, sustainability and innovation across the supply chain. Bruyn’s aim was to connect students with real-world experience, industry insight and purpose-driven career opportunities that could shape their futures, and she exceeded expectations. 

“I felt like a little kid in a candy store,” she says. “These students got to see what the U.S. textile supply chain actually looks like, from the inside. That kind of experience changes everything.”

Leading with Grace

Ask anyone who has worked with Bruyn what makes her different, and you’ll likely hear the same word: grace. Not politeness or pleasantry. Grace as an active, intentional way she shows up, especially on the hardest days.

“It’s easy to have grace on the good days,” she says. “When you get hit with tough times, you have to give yourself some grace first.”

At MMI Textiles, that looks like accountability without ego. Everyone pitches in. No one is above the work.

“It’s easy to have grace on the good days. When you get hit with tough times, you have to give yourself some grace first.”

“You could be in the warehouse. I will grab boxes for you,” Bruyn explains. “I will do whatever it takes so that we all roll in the same direction.”

She brings that same humility to her advice for young entrepreneurs.

“You’re not going to have all the answers,” she says. “If you’ve got a really good idea, you know you can do it and you’re hardworking, do it.”

Investing in the Next Generation

Bruyn’s investment in Wilson College students has taken shape in more than one way.

She first made an immediate impact in December 2024 by establishing the MMI Textiles and Amy Bircher Bruyn Textile Pioneer Student Enrichment Fund through a $100,000 donation. This fund supports enrichment opportunities for Textile Pioneer Scholarship recipients, helping them pursue high-impact experiences such as study abroad, internships, conferences, leadership programs and hands-on career exploration.

Then, in May 2025, she built on that generosity with the Amy Bircher Bruyn High-Impact Award Endowment, a $500,000 planned gift that reflects her belief in supporting students not just now, but for years to come.

For Bruyn, both funds reflect something deeply personal. Her philanthropy is not only about recognizing achievement. It is about expanding access for students who are working hard and simply need someone to open a door.

“These funds are really about creating a runway for students who have already done everything right. They’re working hard, they’re showing up, they’re earning it. They just need someone to believe in them.”

“I’m really passionate about a kid that is working hard, that is doing well at school, and they just need a break,” she says. “They’re never going to get that break unless somebody gives them that chance.”

That belief is at the heart of what she hopes her support will mean for Wilson College students, both now and for many years to come.

“These funds are really about creating a runway for students who have already done everything right. They’re working hard, they’re showing up, they’re earning it,” Bruyn says. “They just need someone to believe in them. I want these funds to be that for Wilson College students, because that’s what changes a life.”

This impact is already visible. Class of 2029 Centennial Scholar Reese Levinson first met Bruyn while interning at MMI Textiles’ Cleveland warehouse. 

“It was especially inspiring to watch a woman excel in a predominantly male-dominated industry,” Levinson says. 

That early exposure to Bruyn’s leadership and the world of textiles helped spark an interest that eventually led Levinson to the Wilson College of Textiles. And it is exactly the kind of ripple effect Bruyn hopes her endowment will create.

She is quick to point out that mentoring runs both ways.

“Mentoring isn’t charity,” Bruyn says. “I actually get as much out of it from young students as they hope to get out of me.”

Joining the North Carolina Textile Foundation Board of Directors

Bruyn’s newest chapter brings her to the North Carolina Textile Foundation Board of Directors, a natural extension of everything she has already been doing, just with a wider reach.

The foundation advances the Wilson College of Textiles through engagement, partnership and philanthropy. Its board brings together experienced industry leaders who work to ensure the college evolves alongside the industry it serves.

Bruyn brings something distinct to that table. She is an entrepreneur who built a company from scratch, a mentor who has invested real time in students and a philanthropist who knows firsthand what it means to open a door for someone who couldn’t have opened it themselves.

“No matter where you went to college, if you’re in the textile industry, you should be supporting this college,” she says.

For Bruyn, that’s not a talking point. It’s something she already proved long before she joined the board.

From her childhood on the factory floor to three decades building MMI Textiles, every part of Bruyn’s journey has led to this moment: helping to shape the next generation of industry leaders.

The resilience. The humility. The grace.

It was always in the fabric.