About Us
Our Story
A brand with huge potential…
The Zip Yard was founded in 2005 in Belfast offering quality, fast and efficient clothing alterations to the public and local businesses.
The company now has 53 franchise stores across England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland and is growing fast. WIth our recent deal with Tesco to expand Zip Yard stores into Tesco Extra’s we’re looking forward to even faster growth of the brand in the coming years.
The success of The Zip Yard has relied upon taking a different approach to the clothing alterations business. People want their garments, whether they are ‘every day’ items or ‘special occasion’ wear, altered by trained professionals they can trust, quickly and efficiently, in clean modern premises. This has led to our branches enjoying a high volume of repeat business on a weekly basis.
…taken to the next level
While The Zip Yard was hugely popular in Ireland and Northern Ireland, it was still only just beginning its spread in the UK, despite being one of the few clothing alterations business which could offer such a high standard of service in a booming market.
Leeds franchise owner, Neluka Dunning, had already fallen in love with the franchise since she joined back in 2019, and was becoming more and more excited about its potential. Despite the challenges she faced when the pandemic hit in early 2020, she could see just how much her local community needed and benefitted from her services. She had a vision of opening a The Zip Yard store in every major town and city in the UK, and decided she should be the one to make it happen.
Soon after, Neluka approached The Zip Yard HQ in Belfast about how they might work together. They had been keen for a number of years to have a new partner to promote the UK side of the franchise, and so were very receptive to Neluka’s ideas.
After hammering out some details between them, Neluka took over the UK master franchise licence and the rest is history!
“There are so many incredible things about being a The Zip Yard franchise owner. In fact, I see so much value in it that I now own the UK franchise network. It’s financially rewarding, while also being a genuinely great business for a more sustainable world.”
– Neluka Dunning – Managing Director – Zip Yard Franchising GB Ltd