Special Editions — The Joy of Printing

Interestingly, Esser and Peterman claim they “never tried to build a house of cards.” They put everything, all of their profits, back into the business and, through that reinvestment, have been able to sustain growth.

When Special Editions opened, Esser and Peterman were in their 20s and owned only a few pieces of printing equipment (purchased from Esser’s father, when his small print shop closed in 1992 during a recession). The two friends got personal loans from their families, rented an 8,000-square-foot facility in Milwaukee and bought everything else via COD.