Today we’d like to introduce you to Carla Maples and Erica Simon.
Carla and Erica, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Our story starts out a little crazy: we were both former coworkers and between jobs, so this resulted in the idea of trying our hand at day trading to fill our free time; and to try and make some extra money. We quickly found out that the Stock Market was very unpredictable and neither of us particularly liked losing our hard-earned money. One day, after losing a large portion of our trading account, we both began contemplating looking for jobs. However, neither of us were fond of the idea of starting over at a new company, and given past experiences we had in the workforce, we decided to move full steam ahead and form our own company.
We then contacted another former coworker to come and join us. We all had a background in procurement & supply chain management, so the logical step was for us to set up some form of supply company. We settled on Print Brokering. Our thinking, at that time, was that no matter how bad the economy gets, companies will still need business cards, wraps for their fleets, brochures to advertise their products, signs, etc. It just so happened, that a very close friend of ours had a print shop so we worked with him on the projects that we were securing. We began growing and putting away our profits in a savings account to purchase our own equipment so that we could begin printing ourselves.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Anyone that has started a company from scratch would be lying if they said it went off without a hitch. We originally started our business working out of one bedroom in a house. Money was tight, quarters were cramped, stress was ample, tempers flared, doubt crept in, but there was no plan B. We were very determined to keep on keeping on. Our perseverance and dedication to get the company up and running quickly paid off.
Before we knew it, the business had taken over a majority of the house. We eventually out-grew that space. In April of 2017 we relocated to our current facility, with 2 floors and a warehouse, so that we could hire more members of our team and have an adequate amount of working space.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about MKS Commercial Printing – what should we know?
We specialize in assisting our clients with all their brand recognition, marketing and advertising needs. We are a full-service custom design, print and installation company.
This approach allows our clients to focus on what increases their profits and eliminates the need for them to work with several different companies.
As a company, we are most proud of our team members and how hard they have worked together to get us where we are now. Every team member takes pride in their work and has such a passion for what they do that it shows in the quality of products that are supplied to our clients.
There are many different types of printing companies such as; Screen printers, Offset printers, and Digital printers. Most people aren’t aware of what the differences are and in which circumstances to use a particular type of printer in order to get the best value for their budget. We use our expertise to assist our clients in making the correct choices for their needs. We believe that our eagerness to sit with a client to understand their specific need and budget, our willingness to provide a full-service approach and our dedication to quality is what sets us apart for other printing companies.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
We owe credit to our families, employees and friends for supporting us and sticking by us while we set out on this incredible journey. Each person that has intersected our lives, both for the good and the bad, has played a role in leading us to where we are today. We are also very grateful for our loyal clients and their continued support and belief in our company and products.
Contact Info:
- Address: 5750 North Sam Houston Parkway, East Suite 216, Houston, TX 77032
- Website: www.mksprinting.com
- Phone: 832.980.8345
- Email: sales@mksprinting.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mksprinting/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mksprinting/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/MKS_Printing
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/mks-commercial-printing-houston
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