What You Might Not Have Realized About Kwik Lok Bag Closures

Bread clips, the small and flat pieces of plastic found in bread packages, are conveniently designed to be used repeatedly. These colorful clips are meticulously produced by a single company based in Yakima, Washington, called Kwik Lok.

Kwik Lok invented these plastic clips to seal and reseal bags, commonly with bakery products but also for fruits and vegetables. In 1952, company founder Floyd Paxton carved the first bread clip out of an expired credit card, using his penknife to seal the complimentary package of nuts he was eating on a flight.

Now officially known as Kwik Lok Closures, the company has 330 employees and six factories that produce billions of bag closures annually. The family business was passed down to Floyd's son, Jerre, and is still owned by his two daughters today.