09/29/10 It’s been a fun ride according to Jeff Jones, President of Anco Office Products. “Back when we opened, we had no outside commercial accounts, dad serviced our customer’s mechanical machines and I delivered most of the items on my Suzuki motorcycle!”
In 1975, we bought out Anco Office Equipment on Water Street and moved up to Michigan Street to the building formerly occupied by Plymouth Office Supply. My folks were the “bean counters” and handled inside operations and I hit the streets setting up commercial accounts. Dad also serviced mimeographs, cash registers, adding machines and later became our very first authorized Canon copier technician when we became an authorized dealer in 1978. Those who knew my father knew a man that could fix anything and many times could re-engineer something to make it better than new!
Much has changed over the years as information travels at lightening speeds and mechanical technology has long been replaced by digital networked integrated solutions. A few things haven’t changed over the years. Downtown Plymouth is still the heart, the soul, and the character of Plymouth’s past and our future. “We are glad to be firmly rooted here as downtown Plymouth has been good to us. Our business, while more complex than 35 years ago, continues to thrive. Treating our customers like we would want to be treated has always been our number one goal,” according to Jeff.
Today, we have established accounts over a 50 mile radius but by choice remain small with a dedicated and extremely knowledgeable staff. We greatly appreciate their commitment and hard work over the years. My wife, Lenore, learned about the business from the ground up from my dad, Merlin and mother, Margot, and oversees the day to day operations. Mom and Dad passed the torch a number of years ago. I’m extremely fortunate to have this remain a family run business and that I can continue to focus on our outside commercial accounts.
As we migrate more to online sales through our website, we would like to thank our loyal, long-time customers over the years. We look forward to continuing those and developing new relationships for many more years to come!
