VF Corp. and Cone Mills Corp.

VF Corp. and Cone Mills Corp. have long had a symbiotic relationship, no surprise considering the former is the world's largest apparel manufacturer, with brands such as Wrangler and Lee jeans under its belt, and the latter the world's biggest denim maker. Now acquisition-hefty VF is buying the headquarters of slimmed-down Cone, which has shed nearly a third of its work force in an effort to whip itself into shape. In fact, it only needs about a third of the space in its 181,000-square-foot office complex on 15.6 acres for its 250 employees...