This 19th-century building originally housed a textile factory founded by Patricio Valencia, a native of Salamanca and son of Spanish parents. He named the facility La Perla and used the site of the former Molino de la Esperanza, taking advantage of its ample land and the abundant water supply from river-fed canals, to produce cotton fabrics such as mantas, camballas, and cotones. When his son-in-law Eusebio González took over management, he renamed the factory La Reforma, in support of the national progress championed by President Benito Juárez.

On April 13, 1913, a fire caused by a short circuit destroyed the factory. A new company was formed on April 21, 1917, to restart operations. In 1929, the property was purchased from the Negociación Fabril de la Reforma, and by May 1932, the production systems were fully reinstalled. The factory officially resumed operations on December 15 of that same year.