COMPANY·HISTORIES
SIC 7374

Photocopying and Duplicating Services

How the companies in this industry began, and the forces that shaped them.

38companies1887–1996founding years38still active0no longer operating
§ 01

The industry over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironment
FoundedKansas City Southern Industries, Inc.
1887
FoundedTRW Inc.
1901
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
FoundedGaleries Lafayette S.A.
1905
FoundedXerox Corporation
1906
1908
TechnologyThe Ford Model T brings the automobile to the middle class.
FoundedBowne & Co., Inc.
1909
1913
EconomyThe Federal Reserve is created.
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
FoundedCCH Inc.
1927
FoundedGrumman Corporation
1929
EconomyThe stock market crashes; the Great Depression begins.
1933
EconomyNew Deal reforms reshape banking and industry.
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long postwar expansion begins.
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented at Bell Labs.
1956
EconomyThe Interstate Highway program remakes commerce.
FoundedVolt Information Sciences Inc.
1957
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
FoundedMcLane Company, Inc.
1964
FoundedTyler Corporation
1966
FoundedBig Flower Press Holdings, Inc.
1967
FoundedComputer Data Systems, Inc.
1968
FoundedScience Applications International Corporation
1969
FoundedAmerican Management Systems, Inc.
1970
EnvironmentThe EPA is founded; environmental regulation expands.
1971
EconomyThe dollar leaves the gold standard; Nasdaq opens.
1973
EconomyThe OPEC oil embargo triggers a global shock.
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins with the Altair.
1979
EconomyA second oil crisis drives inflation higher.
FoundedCompuServe Interactive Services, Inc.FoundedPolicy Management Systems Corporation
1980
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
FoundedSunGard Data Systems Inc.
1982
FoundedTotal System Services, Inc.
1983
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
1987
EconomyBlack Monday: markets fall 22% in a single day.
1991
TechnologyThe World Wide Web is released to the public.
1993
TechnologyThe Mosaic browser brings the web to everyone.
1995
TechnologyWindows 95 launches; the internet goes mainstream.
1997
EconomyThe Asian financial crisis rattles global markets.
EnvironmentThe Kyoto Protocol sets the first climate targets.
2000
EconomyThe dot-com bubble bursts.
2001
EconomyThe September 11 attacks; a recession follows.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 begin to take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
2008
EconomyThe global financial crisis freezes credit.
2010
TechnologyCloud computing goes mainstream for business.
2015
EnvironmentThe Paris Agreement sets global climate targets.
2020
EconomyThe COVID-19 pandemic upends the global economy.
2022
EconomyInflation spikes; central banks raise rates sharply.
2023
TechnologyGenerative AI reaches mainstream business use.
§ 02

The companies

Kansas City Southern Industries, Inc. →
Active · founded 1887
Kansas City Southern Industries, Inc.
Kansas City Southern Industries, Inc. →
Active · founded 1887
Kansas City Southern Industries, Inc.
TRW Inc. →
Active · founded 1901
Long a conglomerate, TRW Inc.
TRW Inc. →
Active · founded 1901
Long a conglomerate, TRW Inc.
Galeries Lafayette S.A. →
Active · founded 1905 · France
Galeries Lafayette S.A.
Galeries Lafayette S.A. →
Active · founded 1905 · France
Galeries Lafayette S.A.
Xerox Corporation →
Active · founded 1906
Xerox Corporation, virtually synonymous with photocopying, now touts itself as The Document Company.
Xerox Corporation →
Active · founded 1906
Xerox Corporation, virtually synonymous with photocopying, now touts itself as The Document Company.
Bowne & Co., Inc. →
Active · founded 1909
The world's largest financial printer and one of the oldest companies in the United States, Bowne & Co., Inc.
Bowne & Co., Inc. →
Active · founded 1909
The world's largest financial printer and one of the oldest companies in the United States, Bowne & Co., Inc.
CCH Inc. →
Active · founded 1927
Best known as the publisher of the Standard Federal Tax Reporter, CCH Inc., publishes a wide array of topical law…
CCH Inc. →
Active · founded 1927
Best known as the publisher of the Standard Federal Tax Reporter, CCH Inc., publishes a wide array of topical law…
Grumman Corporation →
Active · founded 1929
The manufacturer of the U.S.
Grumman Corporation →
Active · founded 1929
The manufacturer of the U.S.
Volt Information Sciences Inc. →
Active · founded 1957
Volt Information Sciences Inc.
Volt Information Sciences Inc. →
Active · founded 1957
Volt Information Sciences Inc.
McLane Company, Inc. →
Active · founded 1964
McLane Company, Inc., is one of the largest wholesale distribution companies in the United States.
McLane Company, Inc. →
Active · founded 1964
McLane Company, Inc., is one of the largest wholesale distribution companies in the United States.
Tyler Corporation →
Active · founded 1966
Once a Fortune 500 company with more than $1 billion in sales, Tyler Corporation operates as an information services…
Tyler Corporation →
Active · founded 1966
Once a Fortune 500 company with more than $1 billion in sales, Tyler Corporation operates as an information services…
Big Flower Press Holdings, Inc. →
Active · founded 1967
Big Flower Press Holdings, Inc.
Big Flower Press Holdings, Inc. →
Active · founded 1967
Big Flower Press Holdings, Inc.
Computer Data Systems, Inc. →
Active · founded 1968
Computer Data Systems, Inc.
Computer Data Systems, Inc. →
Active · founded 1968
Computer Data Systems, Inc.
Science Applications International Corporation →
Active · founded 1969
Science Applications International Corporation is a leading U.S.
Science Applications International Corporation →
Active · founded 1969
Science Applications International Corporation is a leading U.S.
American Management Systems, Inc. →
Active · founded 1970
American Management Systems, Inc.
American Management Systems, Inc. →
Active · founded 1970
American Management Systems, Inc.
CompuServe Interactive Services, Inc. →
Active · founded 1980
One of the world's leading online information services, CompuServe Interactive Services, Inc.
CompuServe Interactive Services, Inc. →
Active · founded 1980
One of the world's leading online information services, CompuServe Interactive Services, Inc.
Policy Management Systems Corporation →
Active · founded 1980
Policy Management Systems Corporation (PMSC) provides computer software and information services that help…
Policy Management Systems Corporation →
Active · founded 1980
Policy Management Systems Corporation (PMSC) provides computer software and information services that help…
SunGard Data Systems Inc. →
Active · founded 1982
SunGard Data Systems Inc.
SunGard Data Systems Inc. →
Active · founded 1982
SunGard Data Systems Inc.
Total System Services, Inc. →
Active · founded 1983
Total System Services, Inc.
Total System Services, Inc. →
Active · founded 1983
Total System Services, Inc.
SABRE Group Holdings, Inc. →
Active · founded 1996
SABRE Group Holdings, Inc.
SABRE Group Holdings, Inc. →
Active · founded 1996
SABRE Group Holdings, Inc.
Build It Today

Starting a photocopying and duplicating services company now

Each week we rebuild one of these stories for today's tools and capital.