Concord Supplies
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Concord Supplies is a U.S. wholesale distributor and retailer founded in 1946 by Kenneth R. Reick (March 18, 1909) as Formfoto Manufacturing (later renamed Yorktown Industries, Inc.). It is currently based in Addison, Illinois.
While working at a medicine cabinet and shower stall manufacturing company in 1946, Kenneth R. Reick noticed that a large number of orders were being misplaced or lost within the order fulfillment process. He traced the problem to the companies' inability to duplicate order paperwork and thereby reduce the potential loss of orders within the system.
Although initially trained as accountant, Reick worked in his basement to design, develop, and patent one of the first commercially viable photocopying machines. Over his lifespan, Reick eventually held more than 70 patents in the field of copy and image reproduction. Throughout his efforts, his wife Emma was supportive and an eager assistant. It was not uncommon to see her dashing to the store in search of supplies or equipment. She would remain a vital contributor to Yorktown as an administrative assistant until her retirement in 2006.
In 1950, Reick founded Formfoto Manufacturing, a company that designed and built copiers. Twelve years later, he bought a minority stake of Yorktown Industries (a copier supplies and distribution organization). Soon after, Reick purchased the remaining shares of the Yorktown Industries organization from his two partners, thereby becoming the sole owner of the company.
Formfoto built copier models for AB Dick, Bell & Howell, Charles Bruning Company, AM Multi Graphics, Smith Corona, and many others. As an astute businessman, Reick retained the right to sell copiers under Yorktown Industries' own brand of Genie (named for his daughter, Jean).
Reick's sole ownership came to an end in 1967, when Sunbeam purchased both Formfoto and Yorktown Industries. The former was renamed Sunbeam Business Equipment Company. Reick signed a 7-year employment contract to remain as the President of Yorktown Industries. As luck would have it, three years later the companies merged under the Yorktown name.
In 1976, Reick re-purchased Yorktown Industries from Sunbeam upon his retirement from that company, making it a family business once more. That was cemented three years later, when his son (and current President) Kenneth W. Reick began his career with the company.
After almost 40 years in the business, in 1987 Yorktown discontinued selling hardware to focus exclusively on copier supplies. The company added fax supplies to its list of products in 1994, which expanded again the next year to include laser printer supplies.
At the beginning of 2004, Yorktown Industries transformed itself again by entering the consumer retail market with the introduction of the Concord Supplies brand and a new website ConcordSupplies.com. Concord Supplies provides consumers with a wide selection of printer, copier, and fax supplies through this e-commerce website. Featured brands include Xerox, Brother, Hewlett Packard, Canon (company), Dell, Okidata, Epson, Lexmark and numerous others.
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[edit] References
- Goliath Company Profiles. Yorktown Industries, Inc., 2006 (December)
- Blesch, Gregg. Not The Same Old Copy Shop. Medill News, 2002.
