Montreal, Tuesday, March 18, 2003 – Gildan Activewear Inc. (NYSE: GIL; TSX: GIL.A) today announced the appointment of Mr. Pierre Robitaille to its Board of Directors.

Mr. Robitaille acts as a corporate director and business advisor, having previously enjoyed a successful career as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., and prior to that as managing partner of the Montreal office of Ernst & Whinney.

Mr. H. Greg Chamandy, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Gildan Activewear, commented that “we are pleased to have attracted an additional independent Board member with the strong financial credentials and impeccable reputation for which Mr. Robitaille is recognized within the Canadian financial community. We look forward to benefiting from his advice and guidance, both on our overall Board of Directors as well as on our Audit Committee.”

At the recent Annual Meeting of Gildan Activewear, held on February 6, 2003, Dr. Gerald Ross, Dean of McGill University Faculty of Management, was elected to the Company’s Board of Directors. With the appointments of Dr. Ross and Mr. Robitaille, Gildan has further enhanced the composition and independence of its Board of Directors, and now has six independent directors, out of its total Board membership of nine.

Profile

Gildan Activewear is a vertically-integrated manufacturer and marketer of premium quality branded basic activewear for sale principally in the wholesale imprinted activewear segment of the Canadian, U.S., European and other international apparel markets. The Company manufactures and sells premium quality 100% cotton and 50% cotton/50% polyester T-shirts, placket collar golf shirts and premium quality sweatshirts in a variety of weights, sizes, colours and styles. The company sells its products as blanks, which are ultimately decorated with designs and logos for sale to consumers.

(Unless otherwise indicated, all amounts are expressed in Canadian dollars.)

Certain statements included in this press release may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward- looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from future results expressed or implied by such forward- looking statements. We refer you to the Company’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Canadian securities regulatory authorities for a discussion of the various factors that may affect the Company’s future results.