It was the beginning of the 1970’s (think bell bottoms and wide collars), and Donald Abbott’s position at a Chicago advertising firm was being eliminated. With a wife and two small children at home, he needed to come up with a Plan B quickly. One of his duties during his advertising career was to purchase printing, and he was always amazed to find that there was really no good option for buying the type of printing he needed. At that time, commercial printers featured big equipment, long turnaround times, and high prices. Abbott saw a real market for quick, small format printing that was reasonably priced. After a very short “internship” (of a few weeks) at a Chicago quick print shop, he opened the doors of Abbott’s Minute Printing Center in December 1972.

 

Abbott’s timing with this new type of printing was indeed good, and with tremendous hard work and some good luck, he and his wife Beverly made the business successful. They learned and grew and developed a loyal following in South Holland and the surrounding suburbs. In 1987, daughter Linda joined the business. This was the beginning of the era that became known as “desktop publishing”, a major change in the way printing was produced. As digital technologies replaced old, traditional methods, Linda was in a perfect position to learn these new skills, and continues to be an expert in graphic design and electronic prepress (as well as a customer service superstar) to this day.

 

January 1994 brought son Michael into the business after eight years in the electrical industry. Already familiar with print production in the “back room” from working at the shop during his high school and college years, he then learned the operational skills of running the business from his parents. The family all worked together for a few years, and with the shop in the good hands of the second generation, Don and Bev retired to Hot Springs Village, Arkansas, where they have enjoyed the good life for the last 18 years. The Abbott family is eternally grateful to our friends, business associates, and the community at large for all the support we have received as we celebrate our 45^th anniversary in business.