What Suttle-Straus does

Suttle-Straus, Inc. is a Waunakee, Wisconsin-based commercial printing and marketing services company founded in 1910, currently led by fourth-generation family CEO Ted Straus and operating as a subsidiary of Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (TDS, Fortune 1000 2023). The company employs approximately 160 team members and runs an annual operational scale of over 100 million press impressions and more than 34 million mailed pieces. Its product portfolio spans offset conventional printing, digital and variable-data printing (VDP), print-on-demand, post-press finishing, direct and transactional mail, large-format displays and signage, kitting and fulfillment with managed inventory, promotional products, and an in-house creative design studio (Suttle-Straus Creative).

Above the physical production layer, the company's principal technology asset is the Customized Brand Portals platform — a configured print-on-demand marketing portal enabling large distributed enterprises to manage brand-approved print collateral and trigger localized fulfillment across networks of franchises, retail locations, manufacturing facilities, insurance agencies, finance offices, and healthcare organizations. The firm also offers 'Connected Mail,' a hybrid mail product that links physical mail pieces to digital experiences via QR codes and personalized URLs. Quality is anchored by Idealliance G7 Master Colorspace facility certification.

Suttle-Straus generates revenue through a mix of one-time print project fees, recurring mailing/fulfillment contracts, managed inventory services, professional services from the creative team, and transactional promotional product sales via the promo.suttle-straus.com subdomain. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales targeting Fortune 500 companies and Madison's largest employers, with a quote-based engagement model and no publicly disclosed pricing. Its go-to-market geography is concentrated in the United States, with primary density in the Madison, Wisconsin metropolitan area, and distribution occurs primarily through direct enterprise sales supplemented by the Brand Portals self-service layer for existing clients.

Name

Suttle-Straus

Legal name

Suttle-Straus, Inc.

Website

https://suttle-straus.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1910

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Suttle-Straus is a 110-year-old Waunakee, Wisconsin-based commercial printer and marketing services firm serving Fortune 500 and large distributed enterprises with offset/digital printing, mailing, signage, kitting, promotional products, and customized print-on-demand brand portal technology.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Waunakee

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Commercial Printing Services: Core revenue stream from offset conventional printing, digital and variable data printing, and print on demand services. Also includes finishing services.
2. Mailing Services: Direct mail, transactional mail, and connected mail services generating revenue from postal and mailing operations.
3. Creative Services: Award-winning graphic design team providing creative marketing concepts and design services as part of the comprehensive service offering.
4. Displays & Signage: Large format signage and display production services.
5. Kitting & Fulfillment: Inventory management and fulfillment services for marketing materials and promotional products.
6. Promotional Products: Sourcing and fulfillment of promotional products through promo.suttle-straus.com subdomain.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Suttle-Straus is a commercial printing and marketing services company providing offset and digital printing, direct and transactional mail, displays and signage, kitting and fulfillment, promotional products, and customized print-on-demand brand portals for large distributed organizations. The company serves Fortune 500 clients with end-to-end print production, brand management technology, mailing operations, and integrated creative design services from its Waunakee, Wisconsin headquarters.

Product overview

Suttle-Straus is a Madison, Wisconsin-based commercial printer and marketing services company offering a comprehensive suite of print production and marketing solutions. The core offering is a multi-service print platform encompassing offset conventional printing, digital and variable data printing (VDP), and print-on-demand, supported by post-press finishing services. The company also provides full-service mailing solutions (direct mail, transactional mail, and connected mail), large-format displays and signage, kitting and fulfillment with inventory management, and promotional products. Above the print production layer, Suttle-Straus operates a technology platform called Customized Brand Portals — a print-on-demand portal enabling large enterprises to manage print collateral and execute fulfillment across distributed networks of franchises, retail locations, manufacturing facilities, insurance agencies, finance offices, and healthcare organizations. The Creative team provides graphic design services as an integrated add-on module. The company was founded in 1910, employs 160 team members, and serves Fortune 500 clients as a subsidiary of Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (Fortune 1000, 2023).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Suttle-Straus Creative: Award-winning graphic design team that works closely with clients to guide them from marketing concepts to delivery of unique, impactful pieces
• Suttle-Straus Technology
• Connected Mail
• Promotional Products

Products and services

• Offset Conventional Printing Traditional offset lithographic printing for high-volume, cost-effective production runs with consistent quality across large quantities, suited for enterprise commercial print buyers.
• Digital & Variable Data Printing Digital printing with variable data capabilities that enable personalized, targeted communications for one-to-one marketing campaigns.
• Print On Demand On-demand printing service allowing clients to print exact quantities as needed, reducing inventory waste and storage costs.
• Direct Mail Targeted direct mail campaign services including design, printing, personalization, and postal delivery to reach customers via physical mail.
• Transactional Mail High-volume transactional mail services for invoices, statements, and other personalized document communications with data integration.
• Connected Mail Print-and-mail solution linking physical printed pieces with digital experiences through QR codes, personalized URLs, or other tracking mechanisms.
• Displays & Signage Large-format printing and production of point-of-purchase displays, trade show signage, banners, and other visual merchandising materials.
• Kitting & Fulfillment Assembly, packaging, and fulfillment services that bundle multiple printed or promotional items into ready-to-ship kits for clients.
• Promotional Products Sourcing and fulfillment of branded promotional merchandise and swag items including apparel, drinkware, office supplies, and custom-printed promotional goods, accessible via promo.suttle-straus.com.
• Customized Brand Portals Customized print-on-demand marketing portals for large organizations to manage print collateral and fulfill marketing needs across distributed networks of locations, dealers, franchises, agents, or remote sales teams, configured by industry including franchise, retail, manufacturing, insurance, finance, and healthcare.
• Creative Services Award-winning graphic design services guiding clients from marketing concept to delivery of unique, impactful print and marketing pieces, delivered as part of an integrated print and marketing engagement.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 100 ADDY awards from American Advertising Federation Madison, including 19 consecutive years of recognition

Named customers2 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Printing United AllianceminorOthersActive membership in the largest graphic arts trade association serving thousands of member companies through advocacy, education, research, technical information, and cost-saving resources.
• IdeallianceminorOthersG7 Master Colorspace facility certification holder, demonstrating adherence to industry-leading specifications for achieving gray balance and visual similarity across print processes.
• EpicommminorOthersAssociation membership providing industry advocacy, management training, and business-building solutions for print, mail, fulfillment, and marketing services companies.
• Great Lakes Graphics AssociationminorOthersTrade association representing the graphic arts industry throughout Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin through education, promotion, and public affairs.
• Greater Madison Area PCCminorOthersLocal association providing timely information, expertise, education, training, and problem solving to strengthen businesses regarding mailing issues and changes.
• Wisconsin Safety CouncilminorOthersState's leading provider of safety training and programming, official state chapter of the National Safety Council, founded in 1923.
• Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) - Greater Madison Area ChapterminorOthersHR professional membership organization offering opportunities to heighten awareness of current HR issues and assist professionals in building networks.
• Greater Madison Chamber of CommerceminorOthersLocal chamber supporting and advocating for businesses in the greater Madison area, representing over 1,400 unique businesses.
• Latino Chamber of Commerce of Dane CountyminorOthersChamber representing the Latino and non-Latino business community in the greater Madison area, promoting economic growth through advocacy and programs.
• Waunakee Area Chamber of CommerceminorOthersLocal chamber dedicated to helping the Waunakee area reach its full potential in growth and prosperity since 1979, providing unified business community voice.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Taylor Corporation: Large private diversified marketing and printing services company offering commercial print, digital, fulfillment, and direct mail to enterprise clients — the closest comparable in scale and multi-service model to Suttle-Straus.
• AlphaGraphics: Franchise-based commercial printing and marketing services network offering offset, digital, signage, and mailing solutions to local and enterprise customers — closely comparable B2B services portfolio to Suttle-Straus.
• Walsworth: Family-owned commercial printing services firm offering offset, digital, mailing, and fulfillment — comparable mid-market private commercial printer with similar multi-service enterprise focus.

Broad incumbents

• Quad/Graphics: Public commercial printing incumbent with national production footprint serving Fortune 500 marketers across print, mail, and integrated marketing services — overlaps directly with Suttle-Straus's enterprise services but at far larger scale.
• Cenveo: Diversified commercial printing and packaging services provider with overlapping offerings in labels, commercial print, and direct mail — comparable enterprise B2B customer base.
• Donnelley Financial Solutions (DFIN): Public commercial printing and business communications services company serving large regulated enterprises — comparable B2B services breadth and enterprise focus to Suttle-Straus.
• LSC Communications: Traditional commercial printing and marketing services company serving enterprise customers — directly overlapping product set with Suttle-Straus at larger scale.

Emerging players

• Cimpress (parent of Vistaprint): Mass-customization printing platform serving SMBs and enterprises with on-demand print and marketing products — comparable print-on-demand capability but radically different digital-first, automated business model.
• MOO: Online-first premium commercial print brand known for short-run business cards, marketing materials, and customized print — directly competes for transactional print spend with a digital native model.
• Stratasys (related: CorporateGraphics Inc. / PrintingForLess): Mid-market commercial printing services competitor with strong digital marketing and variable data capabilities, comparable to Suttle-Straus's digital/VDP service line, but primarily serving SMB and mid-market online customers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/suttlestraus
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/suttle-straus

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Suttle-Straus