Chamber Business Spotlight #3

Page Office Supply

Welcome to our third installment of the Chamber Business Spotlight; I hope you have learned as much as I have about our local businesses.  Today we are going to take a little trip down Commercial Street and learn about a local small business that started over sixty years ago. I recently had the good fortune to visit with Bert Ogle of Page Office Supply and learned a lot about the history of their business and what makes it a success today.

I think it is only fitting when talking about Page Office Supply that we start in the beginning…  Around 1945 Paul Pete Page opened Page Printing, and then in 1976 the business was sold to Bill & Julie Danek.  Mark & Ruby Segebarth purchased the printing side of the business in 1983. The Daneks continued to own and operate the office supply and changed the name to Page Office Supply.  January of 1998 Page Office Supply was purchased by Bert Ogle and Craig Decker, who still own and operate the business today. When asked; what inspired you to purchase the business? Bert replied “Craig and I were both employees of the business.  We enjoyed our jobs, and we loved our customers”.

Now that we know a little bit about the history of Page Office Supply let’s find out about the goods and services they offer and what hurdles Bert and Craig have had to overcome in the past few years.

“We sell and service copiers, faxes and printers.  We also sell and install office furniture and are a retailer for office supplies”. The greatest hurdles we have had to overcome are “Making consumers aware that even though we are a small business, we can be competitive but offer great personal customer service”. I also asked Bert how the recent economy has affected their business; “We have had to work harder and go farther with our business services.  We have also had to look at different marketing tools that fit our business and service a larger area.”

With every successful business there is a “Success Story” the one thing that your business does that you feel gives you the edge over other business of your type; what would be your success story? “We owe our success to our customers and our employees. We have the best customers, not only do we service businesses in our community and in eight surrounding communities but we also service the individuals of our community. We say we love our customers and we mean it, they are not only our customers, they are our friends! Our employees are second to none; they work daily to provide quality customer service to each business or individual that calls or walks in our front door.  Craig and I strive to run a “Family First” business; we want our employees to know that we are here for them and they are here for each other anytime the need arises”.

Okay I only have a few more questions. If you could offer a fellow business owner advice what would it be? “Expect to work hard and give the very best customer service possible”.  Tell us what is new and exciting in your business? “Our business is ever changing; technology changes every day and we work hard to keep up with it, our service personnel take ongoing training from Sharp Electronics.

Bert thank you for your time today, but before we go can you tell us where you’re located and the best way contact your business. “Page Office Supply is located at 207 W. Commercial or you can give us a call at 417-532-4012”.