The team at Minuteman Press Sandy Springs stands with Greater North Fulton Chamber President Kali Boatright, right, and Sandy Springs Perimeter Chamber President Adam Forrand, left, Aug. 24 in the new shop at 7840 Roswell Road. Many of the customers at Minuteman Press Sandy Springs are local business owners.
From left, former Sandy Springs Perimeter Chamber of Commerce Chairman Chris Burnett; Jon Wittenberg, owner of the Minuteman Press Sandy Springs franchise; and former Chamber President and CEO Tom Mahaffey celebrate local business in 2015.Wittenberg won Chamber’s 2015 Small Business of the Year trophy, the “Sandy.”
The new location of Minuteman Press Sandy Springs is in the Morgan Falls Office Park. Owner Jon Wittenburg said the motivation for the move in April was to increase the square footage of the shop and to streamline production.
Staff Reporter
The team at Minuteman Press Sandy Springs stands with Greater North Fulton Chamber President Kali Boatright, right, and Sandy Springs Perimeter Chamber President Adam Forrand, left, Aug. 24 in the new shop at 7840 Roswell Road. Many of the customers at Minuteman Press Sandy Springs are local business owners.
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SANDY SPRINGS, Ga.— Jon Wittenberg brings the backing of an international company to his Minuteman Press Sandy Springs franchise.
Wittenberg, a self-described introvert, purchased the franchise in 2012 and joined the Sandy Springs Perimeter Chamber of Commerce shortly after opening his press shop.
“Design, print and promote is in essence what we do,” Wittenberg said. “We understand that good printing starts with good design.”
Wittenberg said his secret to maintaining a local business through the COVID-19 pandemic circles back to the relationships he forged with fellow small business owners at networking events with the Perimeter Chamber.
Minuteman Press International has almost 1,000 franchises across the world, including South Africa, Australia and the United Kingdom. There are 10 franchises operating in Metro Atlanta with another 10 throughout Georgia.
After expanding the footprint of his previous shop at 6780 Roswell Road in 2017, Minuteman Press Sandy Springs has settled into a larger location at the Morgan Falls Office Park just up the road on Ga. 9.
The motivation for the move to Morgan Falls in April was to increase the square footage of the shop and to streamline production.
“One of the big benefits of the move this year was being able to place our equipment where it needed to be,” Wittenberg said. “It also gives me expansion capabilities.”
When Wittenberg and his team signed a long-term lease at the office park, they had to gamble on the state of the printing industry in the United States.
According to an industry report from IBISWorld, the print market in the United States was estimated at about $80 billion in 2023.
While digital marketing has expanded in the internet age, people often prefer things they can touch and feel, Wittenberg said.
“We got involved with promotional products a few years ago because we felt it was a good complement to the conventional printing we do,” Wittenberg said. “So, it gives us the ability to be like a one-stop print shop.”
If a local business owner decides they want a brochure instead of flyers, the team at Minuteman Press Sandy Springs already has the equipment and know-how to create the product.
The company employs a full-time designer and a full-time production manager.
Wittenberg said he hopes to hire another designer soon to keep the production process operating more efficiently. The need to hire another team member at the print shop is a problem Wittenberg said he’s happy to have.
From left, former Sandy Springs Perimeter Chamber of Commerce Chairman Chris Burnett; Jon Wittenberg, owner of the Minuteman Press Sandy Springs franchise; and former Chamber President and CEO Tom Mahaffey celebrate local business in 2015.Wittenberg won Chamber’s 2015 Small Business of the Year trophy, the “Sandy.”
What’s more, the team works with customers to ensure they have the chance to look over the design and make changes before going to print.
“If you design it right and print it right, people are going to look at it,” Wittenberg said.
In-house graphics are a benefit because it allows the team at Minuteman Press to offer advice and expert opinions on the designs customers bring into the shop.
While the U.S. Postal Service offers tools for individuals to design their own print products, there is not someone on staff to ensure the product achieves its intended effect.
Entrepreneur Magazine has rated Minuteman Press International as the top printing franchise in the industry for 20 straight years. In the company’s 50-year history, it has been named the No. 1 franchise in the printing industry 32 times.
Minuteman Press Sandy Springs has also received positive reviews from customers across North Fulton, East Cobb and Dunwoody.
Whether customers came in for wedding invitations or a school project, a vast majority spoke to Wittenberg and his team’s honesty, efficiency and quality printing.
“Minuteman Press Sandy Springs is a wonderful shop to do business with,” Russell Wise said in a Google review. “Very responsive, professional quality, well versed in all aspects of their craft and creative.”
When the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns hit the U.S. in 2020, business-to-business industries bore the brunt of economic pain.
“Most of what we do is for other small to medium-sized businesses,” Wittenberg said. “Whenever there’s uncertainty, then businesses are going to be hesitant to spend a lot of money on marketing.”
Initially, there was a temporary increase in business for signage related to social distancing and the pandemic. However, demand for other products and services significantly declined.
Print marketing and advertising spending decreased during 2020-21, Wittenberg said. Because print products are primarily used during in-person events, the effect on local print shops is intuitive.
The supply chain also had a huge effect on the local business and the U.S. printing industry.
“We even had trouble getting paper,” Wittenberg said. “I’d never thought I’d see the day when there would be trouble getting 20-pound copy paper.”
When the supply chain threw a wrench into print production, other areas picked up. For example, the use of direct mail for advertising and marketing increased with so many Americans in their homes.
The new location of Minuteman Press Sandy Springs is in the Morgan Falls Office Park. Owner Jon Wittenburg said the motivation for the move in April was to increase the square footage of the shop and to streamline production.
The return of in-person events in 2022 brought with it opportunities for Minuteman Press Sandy Springs to provide a much wider selection of products and services.
“It’s about as close to normal as it’s going to get,” Wittenberg said. “There are still at times delays in getting a particular line of paper.”
If customers prefer to stick to a certain brand or weight of paper, they may have to wait a little longer, but the uncertainty has declined since the peak of the pandemic.
When asked about the difference between print and digital media in the internet age, Wittenberg gave the business card as an example. A person can tap your phone and your contact information will be instantly in their smart phone. Business cards could be obsolete in just a few years.
Without a physical reminder of the person’s contact, digital business cards often fail to achieve the same effect as a printed one, Wittenberg said.
A complete marketing strategy includes print and digital, which can complement one another if used properly.
“An emotion that you can touch and feel, hold on to or even keep if you want to,” Wittenberg said. “It is often a lasting emotion, an emotion you can revisit if you want to.”
Wittenberg said he believes the COVID-19 pandemic brought the printing industry back.
“As long as we are emotional creatures, I think there will also be a place for printing.”
Staff Reporter
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