Fargo Electronics Files Shelf Registration With SEC.

Business Editors

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 10, 2002

Fargo Electronics, Inc. (Nasdaq:FRGO) today announced that it has filed a shelf registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission relating to the possible offer and sale of up to 7,437,500 shares of common stock. After the registration statement is declared effective by the SEC, Fargo may, from time to time, offer and sell up to 2,000,000 shares of common stock, and certain stockholders may offer and sell up to an additional 5,437,500 shares of common stock. The common stock will be offered in amounts and at prices to be set forth in the prospectus contained in the registration statement and in one or more supplements to the prospectus.

The primary purpose of such a public offering would be to facilitate the orderly sale by Fargo's two largest stockholders, TA Associates and St. Paul Venture Capital, of their Fargo shares. The filing of this shelf registration statement will enable the company to react quickly to market opportunities as they arise and proceed with a public offering.

The Company intends that the proceeds from the issuance of any shares of common stock it sells will be used to provide funds for Fargo's operations and for other general corporate purposes, including the possible repayment of indebtedness, capital expenditures, possible acquisitions, investments, repurchase of common stock and any other purposes stated in any prospectus supplement. Fargo will not receive any proceeds from the sales of common stock by any selling stockholder.

A registration statement relating to these securities has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission but has not yet become effective. These securities may not be sold nor may offers to buy be accepted prior to the time the registration statements become effective.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation, or sale would be unlawful under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.

About Fargo

Fargo Electronics, Inc. (Nasdaq:FRGO) is the world's leader in innovative technologies for desktop plastic card personalization systems. Based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, Fargo creates printing systems that personalize plastic identification cards, complete with digital images and text, lamination, and electronically encoded information.

Personalized identification cards provide physical, information and transaction security for a wide variety of applications including retail stores, e-commerce, government installations, schools, sports and recreation facilities, clubs and associations, and correctional facilities. More than 60,000 Fargo systems are currently installed throughout the U.S. and in over 100 other countries. For more information, visit Fargo's Web site at http://www.fargo.com.

Forward-looking Statements 

Statements made in this release concerning the company's expectations about future results or events are "forward-looking statements." Such statements are subject to the safe harbor created by the Private Securities Reform Act of 1995, and are necessarily subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those reflected in these forward-looking statements.

These risks include:

-- product acceptance and customer demand for Fargo's card personalization
systems and proprietary supplies;

-- actions taken and alternative products marketed by Fargo's competitors,
including Zebra Technologies;

-- supplier relationships, including reliance on sole and single-source
suppliers;

-- lack of inventories of component parts or finished goods;

-- our focus on the identification card personalization market;

-- continuing technological changes in our industry;

-- our dependence on a distribution network;

-- domestic and international regulations and standards;

-- our dependence on international sales;

-- challenges in effectively managing growth;

-- our dependence on technologies we do not own;

-- complex design and manufacturing delays;

-- protecting and enforcing intellectual property rights;

-- inadequate protection against infringement claims;

-- adverse economic and business conditions, including conditions resulting
from the terrorist attack on the U.S. on September 11, 2001 and the resulting
hostilities;

-- adverse changes in the Company's business and distribution network as a
result of the announcement of the now-terminated acquisition of the Company by
Zebra Technologies Corporation.

For more detail, see the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2001.