The Globe and Mail reports in its Wednesday edition that Gildan Activewear's board has put the company up for sale. The Globe's Andrew Willis and Nathan VanderKlippe write that in the last two months a potential buyer has approached Gildan for a takeover. Following this, two unnamed sources say Gildan has given RBC Capital Markets and Goldman Sachs Group a mandate to search for additional bidders. Gildan confirmed on Tuesday that it is open to a takeover. The board formed a special committee that decided it was "in the best interests of Gildan to contact other potential bidders with a view to maximizing the value of any potential transaction," said Gildan spokesman Simon Beauchemin. He added: "Several of these counter parties expressed an interest in considering a potential friendly transaction with Gildan. There can be no assurance any transaction will result from these discussions, and Gildan will continue to provide updates as appropriate." The two sources say the Gildan board has hired Canaccord Genuity Group to advise an independent committee of directors on whether any bid represents fair value for shareholders. One of the sources says a potential buyer would likely need to pay more than $7-billion (U.S.).