Our story
Uncle Dave · 2011
This is the story of how his sister, his nephew and a family friend spent six years building him a better zipper.
Chapter 1 · Meet Uncle Dave
Dave coached with the Stingray Swim Club. He was diagnosed with myotonic dystrophy at 19, and over the years the small things got harder. Buttons. Zippers. Most of all, the start of a zipper, where you line up the pin and push it into the box with two steady hands.
His sister Nancy was an occupational therapist. Her son Scott is an engineer. They wanted Dave to keep dressing himself, on his own terms.
“There were things we wished we could do for him, and for some reason we latched onto the idea we could help him zip up his jacket.”
Chapter 2 · The idea
November 2006
What if the two sides of a zipper could find each other? Scott’s first prototype was a real zipper, taken apart, with magnets glued on. It didn’t work. It did show him the way.
“It was from me taking apart zippers and assembling each prototype by hand that I determined that the problem all along had to do mostly with bad design.”
2007 and on
Scott brought in Dave Lyndaker, a family friend and mechanical designer. With Nancy, they became DNS Designs. They all had day jobs, so the zipper got their nights and weekends: design it, print it, glue it, test it, start over.
July 2009
They filmed Dave in his green jacket with a regular zipper, then with a prototype.
“Much easier. Compare it to what I struggled with on that other jacket, there’s no comparison.”
2009 to 2010
A heavy #10 version for prototype jackets. Then a slim #5, with the first tooth built right into the base so the zipper starts clean every time. Then hooks that lock the two sides together once you zip.
Chapter 3 · The long middle
Every one of these was drawn, built and tested before MagZip® was ready. Swipe through the real thing.
From the Zipper Lab
The moment it worked
“I was given a jacket with the new magnetic zipper… works wonderfully. It was a godsend.”
Chapter 4 · Going public
2011
Everyone who tried it wanted one: kids, grandparents, skiers in gloves.
“We realized this zipper can help everyone. It’s simpler. It’s universal design.”
October 2011
Under Armour found the patent. That October, the team presented at Under Armour’s Innovation Day, and the metal prototype went onto Under Armour jackets that fall. Under Armour licensed it, Ideal Fastener made it, and QuickZip became MagZip.
2013 to 2014
Smithsonian called it the world’s first one-handed zipper. ABC News called it possibly the most radical innovation in zippers in over a century. Inside Edition took it to national TV, and in fall 2014 the first MagZip jackets hit stores.
Under Armour’s launch video said it best: “We fixed zippers.”
Smithsonian · Oct 2013ABC News · Feb 2014Inside Edition · national TV, Feb 2014Fast Company · 2018
“Possibly the most radical innovation in zippers in over a century.”
“Behold! The world’s first one-handed zipper.”
MagZip technology has been used by major brands around the world.
Chapter 5 · Today
MagZip is in clothing from brands around the world, and in every ANKHGEAR hoodie, vest and ZipperBuddy we make.
“It wasn’t just Uncle Dave who was frustrated with zippers. A lot of people are, and we hope this makes their lives a little easier.”
“Even though Uncle Dave and my mom Nancy are no longer with us, we still carry the torch forward. We hope you join us in this mission to make people’s lives just a little bit easier with a zipper design that is universal and better for everyone.”
Scott Peters, founder
To learn more about our mission and manifesto, click here.
FREEDOM Hoodies, kids hoodies and the TeeUp golf vest, with MagZip already sewn in.
Shop clothing →MagZip zippers and parts for makers, tailors and anyone updating their own clothes.
Shop MagZip →ZipperBuddy adds MagZip to the coat you already have. It was invented by Sandi DeRuntz. Meet Sandi.
See ZipperBuddy →Making clothes at scale? ANKHGEAR and Ideal Fastener can supply MagZip in volume.
Talk to us →Gear that gets out of your way.
