Magnetic and Optical Recording Media

According to the latest figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, 4,105 people were employed by this industry in 2009. This figure represented a decrease of more than 50 percent since 1997, when there were 8,021 workers in the industry. Employment numbers fell throughout the 2000s, from 5,374 in 2002 to 4,610 in 2005. Payroll, on the other hand, rose from $159 million in 2005 to $178.5 million in 2009. Of all the employees in the fastener, button, needle, and pin manufacturing industry in 2009, 68 percent were production workers earning an average of $15.98 an hour.

Companies in this industry tended to be smaller in size, with about 60 percent employing fewer than 10 workers, according to Dun & Bradstreet's (D&B) Industry Reports. However, almost 60 percent of people who worked in the industry were employed by larger companies that had more than 100 employees. The average number of employees for firms in the industry was 24.

The total value of goods shipped reached $734.2 million in 2009, down from $776 million in 2005. According to the Annual Survey of Manufactures, buckles, fasteners (excluding slide fasteners), needles, and pins was the largest category in this industry in 2009, accounting for about 53 percent of the total value of shipments. Zippers and slide fasteners represented the second largest, with about 25 percent of total value of shipments, whereas buttons and button parts, including button backs, blanks, and molds, accounted for 16 percent. The remainder was made up by other miscellaneous items. Nearly 90 percent of industry output re-entered as components for other manufacturing industries such as apparel, shoes, knitting mills, and household furniture makers. Items sold directly to consumers constituted the other 10 percent.

One of the industry leaders in 2011 was YKK Snap Fasteners America Inc. of Lawrenceburg, Kentucky, with annual sales of $35 million. Other top companies included Woodland Hills, California-based Talon International Inc., with $38.6 million in sales in 2010. According to the company's website, Talon was the original zipper brand, founded in 1893. By the early 2010s the company operated as an international manufacturer of zippers, buttons, rivets, and other products. Anixter Fasteners of Wood Dale, Illinois, was also an industry leader. Formerly QSN Manufacturing, Anixter Fasteners was purchased by Anixter International in 2008 and as of 2011 employed 260 people.