SALT LAKE CITY--Aug. 13, 2007-- AlphaGraphics, Inc., a leading print, graphics and marketing communications franchisor, hosted 370 franchisees and staff members as well as more than 70 partners and suppliers, at the company's annual conference at Wynn Las Vegas last week. During the four-day event, the company announced several new initiatives aimed at enhancing the capabilities of its business centers as well as growing the number of franchises worldwide.
"AlphaGraphics U.S. business centers lead the industry, with the highest average sales per location, $1,121,000, and our objective is to continue to lead by enabling our franchisees to be true business partners for their clients," said AlphaGraphics, Inc. CEO Kevin K. Cushing. Our role as franchisor is to provide our owners with the tools they need to succeed, and last week, we introduced several new initiatives designed to help grow sales and expand our network:
-- agDirect Marketing(TM), a new division formed to provide our clients with complete, integrated marketing solutions that include all aspects of direct mail, from campaign development to list generation, design and incorporation of cross media elements such as personalized URLs. The company has established a strategic relationship with Dialogue, a Fargo, North Dakota marketing communications agency, to create this new division.
-- AlphaGraphics Sales Academy, a training and education program for AlphaGraphics owners and salespeople as well as clients. The Academy curriculum is structured much like university, with graduated levels based on experience and completion of training prerequisites.
-- A new customer service initiative aimed at building upon the strong service foundation of the network. The program will include training and tools such as newsletters and marketing collateral that focus on AlphaGraphics' marketing communications solutions.
"In addition to announcing these programs and several new business tools, our conference provided us with our first opportunity to introduce key new team members to the network," Cushing continued. "Business Development Director Julie Higgins, who joined us 6 months ago, is leading our agDirect Marketing and Sales Academy programs. The knowledge and experience she brings to AlphaGraphics from her work with Xerox and in direct marketing companies have been invaluable in developing these initiatives. Senior Franchise Development Director Art Coley and Franchise Development Director Suzette Blakemore, who also joined us earlier this year, shared their plans for expanding their network by growing our franchise sales."
The conference culminated in a black-tie awards event, where more than 150 franchisees were honored for excellence in sales, profit, operations and support of the network. New for this year was the Vital Connection Award, which was presented to employees of AlphaGraphics business centers who were nominated by the owners of their respective business centers. AlphaGraphics' top award, the Franny, went to Provo, Utah, franchisee Larry Winzeler.
"The awards taken home by our franchisees are evidence of the caliber of our owners as well as our network," said Cushing. "More than 40% of our owners recorded sales of over $1million per year, which far outpaces any other print and visual communications franchise organization. These industry-leading revenues demonstrate that our clients have already come to rely on AlphaGraphics as their communications partner. And, we're not content to 'rest on our laurels.' In the coming year, we'll continue to set new standards for the printing and marketing communications industry."