By Mark Rowan
Hackworth Reprographics Inc. in Chesapeake, Virginia has a new expanded home that includes another business they own, The Graphics Shop. The joined companies moved into a new space in August.
Hackworth opened for business in 1991 in Chesapeake, VA as a blue print shop with three employees: Charlie, Dorothy and Charles Hackworth. Originally formed to serve the A/E/C market in southeastern Virginia, the company now has more than 25 employees and has added products and services to include wide format equipment sales/service/supplies, color printing, outdoor signage, scanning, online document management and marketing solutions.
In 2012, The Hackworth family acquired a local struggling signage and screen print company. This business was rebranded The Graphics Shop (TGS) and has grown from four original employees to ten. TGS offers vehicle wraps, custom routed signage and commercial screen print services for signs, labels and food merchandising.
In early 2014, it was determined that greater efficiencies could be achieved through combining locations. The Hackworth family was able to purchase an adjacent lot in order to expand the main office location. The added space would allow for relocating The Graphics Shop to pool resources, such as personnel, inventory and equipment, in order to better serve clients in the Virginia marketplace. Demolition and construction began the summer of 2014. One year later, August 2015, the new 5,000 square foot addition is ready for occupation!
The addition is divided into two areas. One side houses a vehicle wrap bay, router room and offices for the Installation Team as well as their tools and equipment. The other side hosts the Graphics Division allowing seven graphic designers from both companies to be in one convenient location along with a flatbed printer, latex printers, eco-solvent printers, laminators, plotters and more. Hackworth’s Graphics Department specializes in poster boards, banners, and small format color printing. The Graphics Shop’s expertise is in wraps, outdoor signage, building signage and commercial screen printing.
“Having both companies at the same location will minimize our travel time and expenses as well as being located in the center of the Hampton Roads area makes us more accessible for our customer base” said Charlie Hackworth, President. “It’s amazing that the clientele being served by both companies does not overlap in the design and fabrication processes...we are incorporating two industries under one roof.”