North American Toner prides itself on taking advantage of two of the biggest buzzwords in Metro Detroit right now: Green and Michigan-made.
The West Bloomfield-based firm is an environmentally friendly distributor of Michigan-made laser toner cartridges, used for everything from laser printers to desktop copiers.
North American Toner recycles old cartridges (made in Portage, Mich.), reprocessing the plastic and metal parts and disposing of any toxic materials, keeping them out of landfills.
"Everything we send out we have a plan to get it back and bring it back into the cycle," David Parker, president of North American Toner. "We want everything back that we send out so we can deal with it. We take responsibility for it."
The 2-year-old firm has found it easy to capitalize on this, growing from one to four employees so far. It plans to add another 3-4 people within the next year.
The company's business has tripled within the last year. It has almost zero overhead expenses and its products, normally sold to businesses, are 30-40 percent cheaper than name brands. Such savings have made it easier for North American Toner to pick up new clients in a tough economy.
"There is lots of opportunity for us and we are constantly picking up new accounts," Parker says.
Source: David Parker, president of North American Toner
Writer: Jon Zemke
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