First of all, Happy New Year to everyone…Amazing to think we are in 2009!…I hope you are all doing well.

I was honored today to be featured as a keynote speaker for a webinar hosted by Canon USA & InfoTrends regarding Multi Channel Marketing. InfoTrends’ Barb Pellow was the keynote speaker.
For anyone not familiar with them, InfoTrends is the leading worldwide market research and strategic consulting firm for the digital imaging and document solutions industry. They provide research, analysis, forecasts, and advice to help clients understand market trends, identify opportunities, and develop strategies to grow their businesses. Please see http://www.infotrends.com.

Based on all of our successful national programs at First Edge Solutions regarding Multi Channel Marketing, they invited us as the keynote presenter…A HUGE HONOR!

As communication with customers is now more important than ever in a highly competitive marketplace, Multi Channel Marketing is a great means to get an edge. It truly was a great session!!!

We would love to engage anyone looking to build market share regarding this topic or any others such as our Document Management capabilities to reduce your costs as well.

We will release the “official” powerpoint as a link once it is available to us.

Thank you to all that continue to call and email with comments…Once again, you can get me at (414) 297-9930 or rmk@firstedgesolutions.com.

Now that we have a blog site I have numerous topics I am thrilled to “blog” about.
Topics such as the Web 2 Print space, consultation over order taking, technology and change within our environment, globalization, the need to market and sell your services perhaps differently than in the past, and many, many others are ones I am excited to blog.

Before we get to all of those great topics, I do have a question for everyone that reads this…

How are we doing?

Now that our integration has been complete for a few months, I would love to hear feedback.

As many of you are already aware, First Edge Solutions, Inc. of Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Metagraphix, Inc. of Phoenix, Arizona have been operating for more than two months as one entity.

The courtship began in October of 2007, and after much work behind the scenes, the integration began on March 20, 2008 with the signing of the Letter of Intent between the two companies. The acquisition was officially closed two months later, and we began doing business as one company on May 28, 2008. As you can imagine, we have dedicated a tremendous amount of time and energy to ensure a seamless transition for all clients, employees, and stakeholders.

The acquisition of Metagraphix empowers First Edge Solutions to expand capabilities and enhance services to all national and regional accounts. We very much look forward to strengthening our current client relationships and opening the door for new prospects.

As for changes to note, First Edge Solutions, Inc. is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Metagraphix of Phoenix has been integrated into the First Edge Solutions corporation with no change in the Southwest office aside from the branding update. As for Milwaukee operations, First Edge Solutions on Jefferson Street has consolidated with the former Metagraphix of New Berlin, Wisconsin, and recently relocated to a state-of-the-art facility in Milwaukee.s burgeoning 5th Ward. Finally, First Edge Solutions has already made significant capital investments in our Milwaukee and Phoenix locations to enhance technology and increase production capacity.

The mutual core competencies that each company brings to the other in this latest acquisition make for a great fit, and First Edge Solutions has retained committed employees from both companies to create a strong foundation for continued growth. The excitement among our Milwaukee and Phoenix staffs is palpable, and we are all eager to share what we have to offer the regional and national business community. I look forward to meeting and thanking everyone who believes in our vision, and welcome your interest in seeing first-hand the exciting things happening at First Edge Solutions.

Thank you for your continued support.