The Lewiston Morning Tribune
Elaine Williams
November 21, 2010
Jim Evans views the modest profits his Rapid Refill store produces as proof the principles of independence and entrepreneurship upon which the United States was founded are as relevant today as ever.
Evans opened the location of the franchise that sells printer ink, cartridges and toner in 2008 in the midst of the recession. Now he's expanding.
The business moved from a building on New Sixth Street in downtown Lewiston near Community Action Partnership to 1714 G St. next to Domino's Pizza. With the change, Rapid Refill added regular business hours of 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday to serve customers with home computers.
Rapid Refill initially specialized in business clients. Evans filled orders with deliveries and through the mail, meeting the demands of the business during the hours he was off from a full-time job in the consumer products segment of what is now Clearwater Paper.
The business is thriving because it offers a basic service to businesses -- most offices are crippled if their printer doesn't work -- while providing a high level of service and competitive pricing, Evans said.
Rapid Refill has products for all the major printer brands -- Hewlett-Packard, Canon, Epson, Dell and Lexmark.
The business sells remanufactured cartridges that can be refilled with ink, as well as new cartridges, Evans said. "I can get any printer toner cartridge in the whole market."
He keeps an inventory of the specialty items his regular customers use the most, something made possible by meticulous record keeping of orders, Evans said.
Delivery, which is usually on the same day, is free -- something Evans believes is a key component to his success. "Employees are at work to work. They don't need to go to the big-box store. Let me take care of that situation."
In many instances, Evans can fix broken printers and has contractors available to handle the repairs that go beyond his expertise.
He's amazed at how many printer emergencies surface. Recently he took a wide-document toner cartridge to an architecture firm that was in the middle of a large job and had run out of ink.
He also is willing to help businesses select new printers, since he's seen how well almost every product works and has a sense of the capabilities that offices of different sizes or functions need. "Some are lemons. Some are just garbage. Then there are other ones that are incredible performers."
Arriving in the place Evans is now -- able to support his wife and two daughters as well as one employee with the income from the store -- has been a challenge, Evans said.
His decision to go into business for himself came when he was recovering at home from elbow surgery after about five years as a Clearwater Paper forklift operator. "It was really hard on my body."
Rapid Refill wasn't any picnic either, especially at first. Evans took a crash course from the franchise, which has more than 100 locations nationwide. It covered everything from the mechanics of printer cartridges to small business taxes.
Evans kept his Clearwater Paper job until he was confident in the revenue from his start-up.
"When people say the American way hasn't worked for me, I say 'You bet. You haven't tried it.' "
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