Muscle Bound Bindery — Strength and Flexibility

For Mike Welsch, strength and flexibility are the keys to building a successful postpress business. The Muscle Bound Bindery president credits the durability of his products for building the reputation his Minneapolis-based bindery enjoys. Strength and flexibility also characterize Muscle Bound's growth from an extension of a publishing house to one of the leading case binding and Otabind producers in the country.

Muscle Bound Bindery was founded by Jerry Hanson in 1967 as the hardcover book binding arm of Lerner Publishing. The company quickly outgrew the 900 square feet it occupied on the fourth floor of a Lerner warehouse. Even after several expansions within that warehouse, the facility remained cramped as the company added new services and maintained a steady pace of growth.