Wade Companies in Columbus acquires ColorMac2, the screen printer for Realtree, Duck Commander

A 76-year-old Columbus dry cleaning and linen service company has purchased a nearly three-decade-old screen printing business with expectations of a prosperous and colorful future.

The Wade Companies, headquartered on Linwood Boulevard in the Midtown area of Columbus, said Friday it closed the acquisition of ColorMac2 on Thursday. The screen printer is now on River Road, but is relocating quickly to Linwood Boulevard.

“We’ve been working on it since about April,” said Tripp Wade, owner of The Wade Companies. He declined to disclose the price tag for ColorMac2, but said the combined companies will have annual sales between $5.5 million and $6 million.

“It fits well with ours since we were already in the promotional product business,” Wade said of ColorMac2, which he purchased from partners Greg and Lori Auten, and Coy Nichols. “What we’re trying to say is during the day we like to do your cleaning and your business clothes, and now, when you go home and change into your relaxing clothes, we can provide you with comfortable T-shirts and etcetera.”

ColorMac2 is a full-service screen printer, capable of producing items designed and decorated with of up to 12 colors. Its major customers include outdoors brands Realtree and Duck Commander. Realtree was founded and is owned by local resident and hunting expert Bill Jordan. Duck Commander is a brand launched by a family of Louisiana hunters and businessmen who also star in the cable TV reality series, “Duck Dynasty.”

Wade said Ranger Joe’s in Columbus and Hunt Brothers Pizza also are customers of ColorMac2, which was founded more than 25 years ago and has had multiple owners, with Nichols buying it in 2007, then bringing in the Autens as partners a few years ago.

“I’m just excited to be able to grow and have the resources to go after some customers that we may not have been able to before,” said Nichols, who will remain as manager of ColorMac2, overseeing its staff of 10 people at 1200 Linwood Boulevard, inside a 14,000-square-foot building that has been renovated and will be home to a showroom and production facilities.

Nichols said relocation of offices and equipment from River Road to Linwood Boulevard, including hundreds of buckets of ink, will take place over the next few days. A crew is coming from out of town to move a large piece of equipment that measures 22 feet across.

“The big machine will take three days to take it down and set it back up,” he said. “We’ll be up and running by Wednesday and, hopefully, we’ll have a 2,000 piece T-shirt order finished by Thursday afternoon and be packing it up.”

Wade said the new ColorMac2 facility will have a graphic artist on staff to assist customers. There also will be a showroom with windows looking into the embroidery and screen-printing operations. That’s to give customers knowledge about the process so they can understand the diligent work and expense that goes into making products, including the use of multiple colors and higher stitch counts.

“I think the thing that sets us apart now is that we’re the premier local provider of all full-color screen printing in our area,” Wade said. “We’re the only screen printer with the capacity to do 12 colors.”

The Wade Companies was founded in 1939 by George E. Wade Sr., who started off using a family vehicle to pick up and drop off clothing for cleaning at Fort Benning. His son and Tripp’s father, George E. Wade Jr., bought the business in 1978, with Tripp — George E. Wade III — purchasing it in 2000. The company now employs 100 people.

Wade Cleaners has grown to five locations in Columbus. The commercial portion of the business, Wade Linen, supplies the restaurant and hospitality industry, including the local country clubs and the River Club. It also does uniform rentals for various occupations, from mechanics to chefs. St. Francis Hospital is its biggest health-care sector client. Graphic and customized floor mats, as well as promotional items, round out the offerings.

Wade said he will now begin the process of learning the screen-printing world more intimately. A key right now is helping the ColorMac2 staff make an easy transition into the Wade Companies organization, he said, pointing out that step cannot be taken lightly.

“It’s all about the employees. You’ve got to make them feel comfortable about the change,” Wade said. “We’ve spent a lot of time trying to make sure everybody’s happy. We can’t afford it — nobody can these days — to just say we’re doing this, and this is the way it’s going to be. You’ll lose your work force. You’ll lose your customer base. So we’re trying to make this as seamless as possible.”

This story was originally published October 2, 2015 at 3:56 PM with the headline "Wade Companies in Columbus acquires ColorMac2, the screen printer for Realtree, Duck Commander ."