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”.

Cambarloc Engineering & Manufacturing

Welcome to the fourth edition of the Chamber Business Spotlight, today we are featuring a local manufacture and I think you will find their story very interesting.

Cambarloc Engineering & Manufacturing, Inc  was founded in 1963 based on a patent for a special machine to insert stiffeners in men’s shirt collars through the use of a mechanism consisting of a cam, bar, and lock (hence the name Cam-bar-loc).

In 1972 the business was moved from California to its current location North of Lebanon.  The company was owned and operated by Howard Edwards along with several investors for many years and was purchased by Debbie and Mike Alwardt in 2004.

Over the years the company has emerged as a world leader in special machines that manufacture ribbon bows for the gift wrapping industry. The company has thousands of various ribbon converting machines currently operating around the world.

In addition to ribbon converting machines the company designs and builds special machines and automation for a wide variety of other industries including automotive, appliance, and consumer products to name just a few.

Debbie and Mike Alwardt purchased the assets of the former company in May of 2004 and began Cambarloc Engineering & Manufacturing, Inc.  Debbie is an accountant with many years of experience in corporate accounting and payroll and Mike is a mechanical engineer with 27 years in the special machine and automation industry.  They saw the opportunity to buy Cambarloc as an excellent way to utilize our experience and work together.  They truly believe that God had led us in the direction to purchase the business and have thoroughly enjoyed the move.

Mike told me what type of goods and Services they offer, “We design and build special, one-of-a-kind machines for a wide range of customers including the bow machine customers.  When the former bow machine customers find that we can do more than just the bow machines they come up with many different opportunities to automate or improve existing processes.  We have also done quite a bit of service work with machine assembly, design engineering and interim management”

With the current economy what are some of the biggest hurdles you have faced so far and how has the economy affected your business? “We have been very blessed in that even during most difficult economic times we have managed to keep our employees working.  We really don’t feel as if there were any major hurdles, just many smaller ones that only helped us to become a stronger business. The economy has hurt us due to the fact that many businesses are now very slow paying their debts which trickles down through their suppliers but we have been blessed not to have any of our customers go out of business.  A positive thing about the economy is that our international orders have increased due to the US dollar being weak worldwide.  Our prices are extremely competitive internationally.”

Mike it seems to me that you and Debbie along with your employees have built a very strong and stable business; what had been the most fulfilling part of this journey and what if any advice would you offer fellow business owners?   “The most fulfilling part for us is the fact that we have managed to provide a stable income for the families of our employees.  With much of our business coming from outside the area we are also bringing revenue back into Laclede County. If I could offer any advice at all it would be to treat every employee, customer, and vendor exactly as you would like to be treated if you were in their position.  (Matthew 22:37-39)”

Mike before we end our visit today is there anything new and exciting in your line of business or world of expertise that you can share with us? “There are many new and exciting things going on in manufacturing currently including 3-dimensional computer design software, robotics, enhanced vision systems, electronic devices, composite materials, and nanotechnology.  There is a definite need for highly-trained manufacturing personnel in engineering, machining, and other technical trades.  Nearly everything that we touch each day has been manufactured by someone, somewhere, and somehow.”

Mike please tell everyone the best way to contact you and your business? Cambarloc Engineering & Manufacturing, Inc., PO Box A, Lebanon, MO 65536, Phone: (417) 532-4601, sales@cambarloc.com

Mike thank you for visiting with us today and giving us an insight to your business.