Could Printing Be a Family Tradition for the Gutowski’s on Bridge Street?
Swift Printing was founded in 1950 by my grandfather Walt Gutowski Sr. He started it in his basement and in 1954 the printing company moved to its current location at 404 Bridge Street, Grand Rapids, MI.
This photo was taken of Walt Senior sometime in the late 60’s (I’d guess due to the nature of his clothing). I’m guessing it was taken for the Craftsmen Club because my grandpa was not the type of man to do formal or traditional things when it came to the printing business.
Sidebar: The Craftsmen Club was a group of printers in the area that would get together. I have great memories of attending the Craftsmen Club as a kid. When I was young they would go to a park and cook steaks and that was the extent of my knowledge. Now I understand the club was a way for printers to connect, make relationships, and share industry knowledge.
I’ve always liked this photo of my grandpa and thought it would be fun to recreate it of my dad, Walt Gutowski Jr. Recently, we had some photos taken of our team and I asked the photographer to take a quick snapshot of my father in a similar pose.
My dad and my grandpa are two very special people. I am so grateful to have learned so much from both of them. My grandpa started the business by doing B to C work. He would see someone’s wedding announcement in the paper and call on them to see if Swift Printing could print their wedding invites and other wedding materials like: wedding programs, personalized napkins, wedding table cards, etc. People still message me about how nice my grandpa was and that he did their parent’s wedding invites. It is so great to hear about how much my grandpa cared about the community and making people’s special day extra special.
When my dad took over the family business in the 80’s, he was able to grow the print shop from a ma and pa shop to a healthy small business. He also added more B to B business. He often shares how he would make a delivery and come back with several new orders. I often hear from my father’s generation that my dad’s band played for their wedding reception, that Swift Printing printed their wedding invites, and how much fun it was.
Sidebar: My dad’s band was called SunDaze back in the day and they were the house band for the Amway Grand. He still has a band, it’s called Walt Gutowski & The Bridge Street Band. I am actually the singer of the group. :)
Printing has surely changed over the years, but our beliefs have not.
Our people are our number one priority. Making sure that we can all have a healthy work/life balance is very important to us.
Making sure our customers are taken care of. If we say we’re going to do something, we do. If we make an error, you can count on us to make it right.
Having deep roots in our community.
Having the best in printing technology.
In 25 years I sure hope Walt 3 and I can take a worthy photo like the two above.
