A History Begins

The vibrant history of our company began with one enterprising and visionary young man, John C. Otto. The son of a German immigrant who settled in Springfield, Mass., Otto went to work in a local print shop at age 13. Eight years later, in 1879, he bought the shop and gave it his name.

Otto soon moved and expanded the plant and hired more workers to keep up with demand for their excellent service. A major fire in Springfield in 1893 forced the plant to move, but Otto capitalized on the opportunity to acquire the newest and best printing equipment, far outpacing his competitors at the time.

As a new century got rolling, the printer was well regarded for its innovation. Otto was known in Springfield for his “unique method of advertising” – sending neatly printed “blotters” each month to businessmen and customers. He was a pioneer of direct mail marketing!

Early JCO clients included young companies Rolls Royce and Oldsmobile, forerunners of the auto industry in Springfield.

Changes and Constants

Otto owned the company into his 70s, when he sold it to Bill and Bob Stirton, who moved the company to its present location of East Longmeadow, Mass. In 1987, the company was purchased by paper industry executive Jeffrey Spear. But the name, and the superior service and excellence in printing it had become synonymous with, remained

Continuing on the tradition of being at the leading edge of printing technology, in 1996 the company purchased a Komori equipment package that made it the first computer-to-plate (CTP) capable printer in the country.

Experience and Progress

The consistent excellence of the company was recognized by printing conglomerate Consolidated Graphics Inc. (CGX), and in 1997 the Houston-based publicly held company bought Otto and added it to its national network of local printers.

Despite Otto’s affiliation, we have remained true to our origin as a local printer specializing in personalized and responsive service – only now we have access to vast national resources