Zipper Business Goes Global

Tag-It Pacific Inc., based in Woodland Hills, Calif., has signed a $20 million deal to franchise its Talon zippers in the Middle East.

The agreement allows the company’s Middle East franchisee, which agreed to purchase at least $20 million worth of zippers over three years, to distribute Talon zippers throughout the region. Production and orders are expected to start in the third quarter of 2005. Tag-It will provide rolled zippers in bulk, along with equipment for finishing the zippers to be included in garments.

This is the sixth franchise deal for Tag-It’s zippers. In January, Tag-It signed a three-year, $6.75 million franchise agreement with a company in Southeast Asia.

Tag-It acquired Talon Inc. in 2001. In addition, it distributes a full range of trim items to manufacturers such as Azteca Production International in Los Angeles and Abercrombie & Fitch Co. in Ohio.

Tag-It, a publicly traded company, is run by the Dyne family, which owns 15 percent of the company’s stock.

Colin Dyne, the company’s chief executive, noted that franchising as a way to build a company was gaining momentum throughout the world.

“We continue to focus on 15 target markets,” Dyne said in a statement. “With this announcement, we are nearly at the halfway mark to meeting this goal.”

Tag-It, however, has been struggling to make a profit. In 2003, the California company had a net loss of $4.7 million on $64.4 million in revenues. During the first nine months of 2004, Tag-It had a $201,000 net loss on $42 million in revenues.

—Deborah Belgum