Today we’d like to introduce you to Tom Doyle.
Tom, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
In 1997, my parents Tom and Diane Doyle printed and laminated our first order at Kinkos. It was for my youth swim team, WSO, in Evanston. I have six siblings and we all swam. They printed the USA Swimming Olympic Time Standards on the tags as a source of motivation for the swimmers. Orange tags for girls, and blue tags for boys, which were also the primary colors for the swim team. The tags were very large, and kind of ugly, but the kids loved them. Soon after, Bag Tags, Inc. was founded.
We were truly a family business. Operating out of my parents home wherever we had space: the kitchen, dining room, our garage/Dad’s home office. Everyone did their part. I was the first “Shipping Manager” at age 11. My Dad paid me a $3/shipping label. My parents donated most of their first orders, including an order for USA Swimming. That order led to a partnership with USA swimming that is still going strong today.
20 years ago, my parents wanted to provide bag tags to athletes as an award, a motivational tool and a simple reminder to do their best. Bag Tags, Inc. had no office, no employees, and one product. Today, we employ 17 people, we provide 7 products, and we manufacture almost everything in-house in the Chicagoland area.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
We were in the red for the first 5 years of business. We did not turn a profit until year 6. I understand that’s a struggle that is not unique to us, but it can be incredibly difficult and discouraging.
We brought our manufacturing in-house in 2012, and that came with challenges, to put it lightly. Nothing worked. It took hours, days, and months of troubleshooting, tweaking, trying new things and of course patience. Lots of patience.
Of course, working with family is both the biggest blessing as well as our greatest challenge.
Bag Tags, Inc. – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Bag Tags, Inc. is an event communications company. There is no substitute for clear and effective communication, and our products do exactly that. Our Credentials and Lanyards will beef up security, improve organization and add grandeur. And our Luggage Tags will build brand awareness and make for the perfect keepsake for your attendees. We also provide beautiful and durable custom wristbands, nameplates, parking passes and business cards!
I am most proud of our team. We are the company that always answers the phone, responds quickly to emails, turns our product around fast and pays attention to the details. We don’t just want to provide a product, we go above and beyond to understand our customer’s needs. But in order for our team to truly care about the needs of the customer, someone first needs to understand and care about the needs of our team.
Nothing is more important than a healthy company culture. If you treat the team like they matter most (because they do), they will treat the customers the same.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Success is relative. it’s possible to grow a company tremendously, with high turnover, bad service, and an unhealthy company culture. But what’s the fun in that?
If you’re building a house, wouldn’t you want to build on a strong and sturdy foundation? Our foundation is our team. Seeing a pattern yet? Create a company where employees enjoy being rather than dread, are empowered to make their own decisions but challenged to reach their full potential, and everyone has a voice. If you can succeed in doing that, then the sales numbers will follow.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1316 Sherman Ave, Suite 215
Evanston, IL 60201 - Website: www.bagtagsinc.com
- Phone: 847-424-1900
- Email: orders@bagtagsinc.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bagtagsinc/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bagtagsinc/
Image Credit:
Lucy D., Jeremy F. Ryan K. and Brian D.
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