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Velcro Brand company history timeline

1957

Velcro S.A. also entered a licensing agreement with Velok Ltd. of Canada in 1957.

1957: George de Mestral forms the company to market a novel hook and loop tape fastener.

Public Company Incorporated: 1957 as Velok Ltd.

1958

A 1958 ad for Velcro that ran in The Terre Haute Tribune.

1959

In a 1959 New York Times piece titled “Nylon Tapes Herald Ease in Dressing,” Nan Robertson described Velcro as such: “The big noise this spring will be a sound like ripping cloth,” she wrote. “It will herald one of the most revolutionary closures in history.”

1964

Jean Billarant establishes Velcro France to produce and sell Velcro® brand (from "Velours" and "Crochet") hook and loop fasteners under a license from the Swiss Company Velcro S.A. He settles in Carquefou near Nantes in 1964.

1967

In 1967, its sales were worth about $10 million a year and its stock $81 per share.

1968

In 1968, Puma became the first major shoe company to offer a sneaker with Velcro fasteners.

1969

VELCRO® fasteners have evolved extensively in the 60-plus years since its invention and even accompanied the first man on the moon, securing components of Neil Armstrong’s space suite on his famous 1969 trip.

1972

Velcro Industries N.V. was incorporated in the Netherlands Antilles on June 7, 1972, and soon acquired the assets of the Canadian operation, Velcro Industries, Ltd.

1978

By the time the patent for the original Velcro tape expired in 1978, the word "Velcro" had become a synonym for hook and loop tape.

1984

In 1984, David Letterman interviewed Velcro USA's director of industrial sales while wearing a Velcro suit.

1988

Annual sales in fiscal year 1988 were $93 million.

1991

Toy companies didn't think up the Super Grip — in which a tennis ball is thrown and caught with a paddle-shaped velcro mitt — until 1991, 50 years after Velcro's invention.

1992

By 1992, Velcro jumping had spread to the United States The game never gained national momentum, but every once in a while it shows up at carnivals and fairs — basically, anywhere you might also find a Moonwalk.

They had reached $115 million by 1992.

1994

Jancsurak, Joe, "Getting Hooked," Appliance Manufacturer, February 1994.

"Velcro's Stuck on Flying Disk Game," Playthings, April 1994.

1995

"Velcro USA Inc.," Automotive Industries, June 1995.

1995: Sales are more than $150 million.

1996

In 1996, earnings jumped nearly 20 percent to $16.3 million, while sales increased more than 10 percent to $177.1 million.

1998

Velcro Industries posted a pretax profit of $41 million on sales of $235 million in 1998.

1999

In 1999, Selectus sold the British rights to the VELCRO® trademark to Velcro's U.K. subsidiary, Addey Milner Ltd.

2001

2001: The Velcro Direct Online business-to-business site is launched.

2002

"Velcro United StatesA. Customers Now Can Order Online," Outdoor Retailer, January 2002.

About 50 of them worked in Arizona, where the sales and marketing was being expanded in 2002.

2003

Employees: 2,858 Sales: $261.2 million (2003) Stock Exchanges: NASDAQ Ticker Symbol: VELCF NAIC: 313221 Narrow Fabric Mills; 339993 Fastener, Button, Needle and Pin Manufacturing; 551112 Offices of Other Holding Companies

2004

Velcro entered the Army market in 2004 via the Army Combat Uniform, a lighter wash-and-wear version of the service's original battle dress attire.

Income slipped in 2004 due to increased competition and unfavorable exchange rates, reported Business Week.

2005

Hartley, Jenny, "Velcro Plant to Close in September," Lancaster News (South Carolina), May 5, 2005.

2009

The material, introduced in 2009, is intended for industrial applications where fabric might be a bad choice due to high heat or sanitary concerns.

2013

Velcro Industries was named one of the world's most effective rebrands in the 2013 REBRAND 100® Global Awards.

2015

Since 2015, we’ve been throwing two newsletters a week into inboxes the world over, and count more than 12,000 regular readers.

2016

Sandrine Pelletier became Managing Director, then CEO in 2016.

2022

© 2022 Velcro IP Holdings LLC

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Founded
1957
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Headquarters
Manchester, NH
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Zippia gives an in-depth look into the details of Velcro Brand, including salaries, political affiliations, employee data, and more, in order to inform job seekers about Velcro Brand. The employee data is based on information from people who have self-reported their past or current employments at Velcro Brand. The data on this page is also based on data sources collected from public and open data sources on the Internet and other locations, as well as proprietary data we licensed from other companies. Sources of data may include, but are not limited to, the BLS, company filings, estimates based on those filings, H1B filings, and other public and private datasets. While we have made attempts to ensure that the information displayed are correct, Zippia is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of this information. None of the information on this page has been provided or approved by Velcro Brand. The data presented on this page does not represent the view of Velcro Brand and its employees or that of Zippia.

Velcro Brand may also be known as or be related to Velcro, Velcro Brand, Velcro Companies, Velcro IP Holdings LLC, Velcro USA Inc, Velcro USA Inc. and Velcro, Inc.