After more than a century of operation in Keene, Southwestern ColorGraphics closed today.
A wholly owned subsidiary of Southwestern Adventist University, the commercial printing company employed 69 workers.
In a meeting with employees this afternoon, company president Larry Garrett announced the “deeply disappointing” news.
According to Garrett, Southwestern ColorGraphics is a causality of the weakening national economy.”
The company, which underwent a major reorganization last May, appeared “poised for recovery” until the end of the year, according to Garret. Declining sales in December and January, he said, “exhausted our capital reserves.”
Garrett assured employees that Southwestern ColorGraphics will pay workers “every penny” that they are owed. “We will not let down our faithful workers,” he stated. Over the next three months, Garret will oversee the liquidation of company assets and the transfer of pending work to other commercial printing companies. He noted that the company has valuable land and equipment that will be sold to cover outstanding obligations.
Despite Southwestern ColorGraphics’ financial problems, the health of Southwestern Adventist University remains strong, according of University president Eric Anderson. The unversity owns Southwestern Diversified Industries, which in turn owns the printing firm.
Southwestern Diversified Industries is operated by a separate board of directors, he noted.
“At this point, it would be irresponsible to start using university funds to keep ColorGraphics open,” he said.
The largest commercial enterprise in the small town of Keene, Southwestern ColorGraphics was a major contributor to local government tax revenues.
“We had a great crew — hard working people,” said Garrett. “I was hoping for a different result.”
The forerunner of Southwestern ColorGraphics opened in 1897, with the original goal of providing “industrial education” and employment to students at Keene Industrial Academy. In recent years, Garrett said, ColorGraphics employed “virtually no student.”
“Unfortunately, the company has ceased to be a good investment for the owner,” Garrett said.
Johnson County
Keene printing company closes
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