What Foote Printing does

Foote Printing is a family-owned commercial printing company founded in 1907 in Cleveland, Ohio, currently led by brothers Michael Duhr (customer relationships) and Steven Duhr (production). The company operates a single facility on East 55th Street with offset lithography, digital printing, wide-format printing, screen printing for apparel, full in-house bindery (including a 2023-vintage Duplo square-spine booklet maker supporting up to 120-page booklets), and USPS-automated direct mail services (NCOA, barcoding, indicia, presort, EDDM, and nonprofit authorization setup). The facility has run on 305 rooftop solar panels since 2017, offsetting roughly 80% of electricity consumption and supporting a 99.9% paper and ink recycling rate, a positioning no Cleveland competitor currently matches.

The company serves a diversified Cleveland and Northeast Ohio customer base across small and mid-sized local businesses (brochures, business cards, signage, envelopes), local political campaigns (postcards, yard signs, t-shirts, union and solar-bugged materials), nonprofits and community organizations (EDDM and nonprofit mail), self-publishing authors (short-run books with multiple binding options), and apparel/merchandise buyers. It is a union shop and a Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses alumnus, with multi-year Top 100 Small Commercial Printer recognition from Printing News Magazine (2019, 2020, 2023).

Foote generates revenue on a per-project, quote-based model across commercial print jobs, in-house graphic design and prepress services, bindery and finishing, and direct mail fulfillment. Customer intake runs through phone, email, website contact, and in-person visits, with finished work picked up at the Cleveland facility or delivered via USPS drop handled in-house. A small but visible social and content presence (blog, Facebook, Twitter/X, LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok process videos) supports local SEO and community awareness.

Name

Foote Printing

Legal name

Foote Printing Company

Website

https://footeprinting.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1907

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Foote Printing is a family-owned Cleveland commercial printer offering offset, digital, wide-format, and screen printing alongside bindery, graphic design, and USPS-automated direct mail to small businesses, political campaigns, nonprofits, and self-publishing authors in Northeast Ohio.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Cleveland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Commercial print jobs: Project-based, per-job pricing for offset, digital, wide-format, and screen printing (books, brochures, postcards, business cards, signage, apparel, etc.). Quoted per project after consulting on specs (size, quantity, paper, finishing).
2. Graphic design services: Per-project fees for in-house layout, typesetting, and creative design for print and direct mail pieces.
3. Bindery and finishing services: Per-job revenue from bindery/finishing (saddle stitch, perfect bound, spiral bound, hardcover, die cutting, foil, lamination).
4. Direct mail services (USPS setup + fulfillment): Fees for list prep, NCOA, addressing, barcoding, indicia, presort, bundling, and USPS drop. Includes a one-time $300 USPS nonprofit mailing authorization setup service.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Foote Printing operates a Cleveland commercial print shop that combines graphic design, offset and digital printing, wide-format and screen printing, in-house bindery, and end-to-end direct mail fulfillment under one roof. Customers buy per-project print jobs (books, brochures, postcards, business cards, signage, apparel, direct mail pieces) plus optional design and USPS mailing services. The facility is solar-powered, and the team handles file prep, USPS automation, and bundling in-house.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Offset Printing Sheet-fed offset lithography for books, brochures, stationery, pamphlets, postcards, and higher-volume runs, typically cost-effective from 500–1,000+ pieces using aluminum plates per color (typically CMYK) for precise ink registration.
• Digital Printing Digital printing from a digital-based image (e.g., PDF) directly to a variety of media, run through a Fiery RIP and supporting variable data printing (names, addresses, offers) without stopping the press. Suited to short runs, quick turnarounds, and personalized pieces.
• Wide Format Printing Large-format output for signage, banners, window graphics, event backdrops, yard signs (e.g., 18"x24" coroplast), POP displays, and foam-core boards, with vector artwork preferred and AI upscaling available as a fallback for raster assets.
• Bindery Services In-house trim, complex folds, and binding options including saddle stitch, spiral, perfect bound soft cover, and hardbound, plus specialty finishing such as die cuts for pocket folders, custom shapes, and circular stickers.
• Mailing Services / Direct Mail End-to-end direct mail services including list prep, NCOA address hygiene, addressing, barcoding, indicia, presort, bundling, and drop at USPS for Marketing Mail (min. 200 pieces), First-Class Presort (min. 500 pieces), EDDM, and Nonprofit Marketing Mail; includes a one-time $300 setup fee to secure USPS nonprofit mailing authorization.
• Graphic Design In-house graphic design, file prep, and typesetting for brochures, books, logos, mailers, and print-ready artwork, including template builds (including die lines for door hangers), preflight checks, and RGB-to-CMYK/Pantone conversion.
• Screen Printing (Apparel) Screen-printed t-shirts, hoodies, and branded apparel for events, campaigns, teams, and merchandise buyers, producing bold solid-color graphics on apparel at competitive prices.

Quantifiable outcome

• Best month ever during a Cleveland off-year municipal election cycle, driven by political postcards, yard signs, and t-shirts.
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

AI capability4 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• ARC Roadway ConstructionminorOthersARC Roadway Construction repaved Foote Printing's back delivery/pickup lot after crews working nearby had extra asphalt and could mobilize quickly. Two layers of asphalt were laid in about 60 minutes. Treated as a one-off facilities vendor relationship rather than an ongoing business partnership.
• United States Postal Service (USPS)coreTechnology or IntegrationFoote Printing operates as a USPS automation mailer, applying indicia, presort barcodes, NCOA address hygiene, and EDDM bundling for Marketing Mail, First-Class Presort, and Nonprofit Marketing Mail. The team also helps clients secure USPS nonprofit mailing authorization.
• Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses (Tri-C / Cuyahoga Community College)minorOthersFoote Printing is an alumnus of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program run in Cleveland through Cuyahoga Community College. The 10KSB alumni badge is displayed on the homepage.
• Printing News MagazinecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPrinting News Magazine has named Foote Printing to its Top 100 Small Commercial Printers list in 2019, 2020, and 2023, citing revenue, growth, Google reviews, and Foote's solar-powered sustainability program.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Mimeo: Cloud-based print and document services platform focused on short-run, on-demand printing with online ordering. Comparable on digital print workflow and short-run positioning; competes for the same SMB and self-publishing customers that Foote serves.
• Printful: On-demand screen printing and apparel/merch provider. Comparable on the screen printing and apparel side of Foote's business, especially for t-shirts and branded merch, though Printful operates on a nationwide print-on-demand model.

Broad incumbents

• 4over: Trade-only commercial printing marketplace offering offset, digital, large-format, and finishing at wholesale prices. Comparable on product breadth and finishing capability, but competes as a low-cost supplier that small commercial printers and resellers use rather than sell against directly.
• Cimpress (Vistaprint): Parent of Vistaprint and several online print brands; the dominant online commercial printer for SMBs and individuals. Comparable on product mix (business cards, brochures, signage, mail) but at far greater scale and with an instant-online-quote model that competes with Foote for price-sensitive buyers.
• PrintingForLess: Online commercial printer specializing in short-to-mid run offset and digital printing with custom finishing. Comparable on offset/digital product set and short-run positioning; competes for the brochure, postcard, and book jobs that are core to Foote.

Direct peers

• FASTSIGNS: Franchise signage and large-format printing network. Comparable specifically on wide-format, banners, yard signs, and event signage — a meaningful share of Foote's political and event-driven business.
• AlphaGraphics: Franchise commercial printing network offering offset, digital, large-format, and direct mail services to SMBs. Comparable to Foote as a small-format, full-service print-and-mail provider for local business customers, though AlphaGraphics is franchised and broader in geographic reach.
• Allegra Marketing Print Mail: Franchise network combining marketing, print, and direct mail services for SMBs. Closely comparable on bundled design/print/mail offerings and SMB target market, overlapping with Foote's in-house direct mail and graphic design capabilities.
• Minuteman Press: Franchise commercial printer with a similar SMB-focused, design-plus-print-plus-mail service model. Directly comparable in target customer, service breadth, and small-shop positioning, even though Foote is independent and Minuteman Press is franchise-based.

Regional players

• The UPS Store (print services): National retail chain offering basic printing, binding, and direct mail services to walk-in SMB and consumer customers. Comparable as a low-cost alternative for small print jobs, though with significantly narrower capabilities than Foote's offset and full bindery.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/FootePrinting
• Facebookfacebook.com/footeprinting
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/foote-printing-co

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Foote Printing