About API
87 Years and Counting
It started with founder Henry Schipper's dream back in 1933. He bought a press and began printing birth announcements out of his Duluth, MN garage. For the next 55 years, Schipper continued to operate and grow the business.
In the 1980s, he moved Arrowhead Printing across the lake to Superior, WI. This is where Rick Fuller, the then-owner of Port Cities Printing, would eventually acquire Arrowhead Printing in 1988.
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Arrowhead Printing would remain in Superior for the next 30 years.
Ok, this photo isn't actually of Arrowhead Printing. They were in the business of printing and not photography, after all. But, it's still a pretty awesome photo!
In the Family
The Fullers owned Arrowhead Printing for decades, so it was no surprise that their son Dan Ericksen, would begin working at the shop in 1987. After high school, a move to Minneapolis, and taking a job at a print shop in the cities, Dan realized the fast-changing print industry was where he needed to be. And, by the late 1990s, he was back working for his parents at Arrowhead Printing.
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Around this same time, Sarah (a previous employee from her high school days) would also return to work at Arrowhead Printing. Despite their history with the company, upon their return, both would start at the bottom of the ladder and spent years working their way up. Then, in 2004, the two married after having met in the very print house they would later own.
Back to Duluth
In 2015, Superior's Arrowhead Printing purchased Duluth's Service Printers—an acquisition that allowed the company to serve customers with increased efficiency and quality. Three years later, the decision to formally merge the locations was made, the larger of the two buildings was selected, and two staffs became one in the old Service Printers building in Downtown Duluth.
Advancements in Printing
Printing may have been around for hundreds of years, and while many of the original concepts are still used today, much has changed.
Graphics are now done primarily on computers.
And, we have a whole pre-press team working on, creating, and reviewing files.
Digital printing has become a necessity for small, quick-turn jobs.
Which is why we have two digital presses at the ready.
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Offset presses are getting bigger and more efficient.
When it was once standard to have just one or two-color presses (and Arrowhead Printing still does), 5-color presses get projects done much quicker. Including the new press installed, we have two of those, as well!
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Customers want to buy online.
It's not surprise that consumers are spending more time ordering online, so it was natural for us to join the game of digital storefronts customized for customers to order their products online.
