The factory building at 68 Winter Street has been home to or rented to several companies over the years, including Barlow Manufacturing Company, for whom it was built in 1907; Holyoke Belting Company; White & Wyckoff; later, American Pad & Paper Company; and Dinn Brothers Trophy Company. Today's account provides information on a short-lived company formed in Holyoke in 1962, Raidy Color Press, Inc.
Recalling the 1960s and into the 1980s, bricks-and-mortar retail shopping was king. Companies compete with each other in several ways, whether through television, radio or the print media. A very popular way of influencing shopping decisions was through newspapers' weekend color tabloid inserts showing sales offerings for the new week. The company would also produce advertising brochures and mailing literature.
The Raidy Color Press, formed in 1962, printed many of these color advertising inserts. Ada Raidy, founder of the business, was a veteran of the print industry, having spent 16 years employed by Magazine Press in Holyoke, including as Assistant General Manager. During her final year at Magazine Press, she was the General Manager, handling sales, purchases and production planning. There were also investors from New York who had financial interests in the Raidy Color Press start-up.
The plant leased 27,500 square feet of space at the former Holyoke Belting Company building at 68 Winter Street. The factory was situated near the Boston & Maine Railroad and had two loading docks to facilitate truck transport. The company purchased a four-unit press from the Bridgeport (Connecticut) Herald and was planning to acquire a two-unit press with a color deck.
The business started with 25 employees and initially planned to work with 30 in total.
After the renovations were completed and the equipment was installed, the business began production on February 7, 1963. The company generated 61,000 8-page, 4-color advertising brochures for the Big 11, a group of independent grocers that was celebrating its first anniversary.
Contracts were in place to operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The company would produce anywhere from 20,000 to 2 million brochures. To satisfy the demand, the company installed a bindery on the second floor of the building.
In late 1963, the company purchased its second press, a four-unit duplex press from a company in Passaic, New Jersey. In its first year and a half of operations to August 1963, business doubled, and by February 1964, it increased again by 40%. Most of the business stemmed from advertising circulars, coloring and comic books for companies in New York and Boston.
In early 1964, the company embarked on a 9,500 square-foot expansion for storage and to later add another printing press.
When mechanical issues halted production in April 1964, the Holyoke Transcript Telegram printed 324,000 color advertising folders from Friday night into Saturday morning.
The company endured some ongoing financial struggles in late 1964 and early 1965 and was forced into an involuntary bankruptcy by several creditors. On July 7, 1965, a public auction was held for the benefit of creditors, ending the story of Raidy Color Press.
Citations:
Newspapers.com (paid subscription): Citations: Holyoke (Massachusetts) Transcript & Transcript-Telegram; publication dates and pages are shown.
Ancestry.com (paid subscription): Price & Lee, Holyoke, Massachusetts, City Directories
No comments:
Post a Comment