Concord Publishing House and Insta-Print -- which offer commercial printing services and high-speed copying -- are moving this week into their new digs at 307 Broadway in Cape Girardeau.

"It just made sense," said Mike Tenholder, Concord's general manager. "It will allow us to do some more things and offer more service to the customer."

The 15 employees are starting to move today to the Southeast Missourian building, which is completing its renovation project. Both businesses are owned by the Gary Rust family.

The Missourian building is at 301 Broadway and Concord and Insta-Print will be at 307 Broadway, although all of the operations will basically be in one building.

The move should be completed by Wednesday, but at no time will the businesses be closed. Tenholder said there will be some overlap, when both buildings will be open for business until the move is completed.

"It should be pretty seamless," Tenholder said.

Concord deals in any kind of offset printing, Tenholder said, including business cards, letterhead, brochures, catalogues and books. Insta-Print handles high-speed and color digital printing.

Signs should be on Concord's new location within the next 30 days or so, Tenholder said. The design staff of the Southeast Missourian and Concord Publishing House will essentially be combined, creating a design staff of about 25, Tenholder said.

The company has added equipment for large-format printing, for items such as posters and banners. Concord will also offer "variable data printing" services, Tenholder said. That kind of printing can be used for including pictures on mailers, for example.

To have Concord and Insta-Print in the Missourian building makes even more sense, Tenholder said, considering that over the past several years, Concord has been doing an increasing number of cooperative projects with the Missourian.

For instance, SHE magazine is created and published by the Southeast Missourian, but the cover is printed and the finished bindery work is done by Concord. Concord does the same for Tipoff, Homes, Newcomers Guide and the Regional Healthcare Directory, Tenholder said.

Having both divisions in the same building will make communication much easier, he said.

The space in the Missourian building became available due to the renovation project, Tenholder said. The second floor of the Missourian building was renovated to accommodate the accounting department, leaving the adjoining building at 307 Broadway open.

Moving Insta-Print along with Concord to the new space required adding reinforcement to the floor to hold digital printing and bindery equipment.

"We felt the extra expense was justified by the efficiency gained from having the sales and design staff from all divisions located in the same building complex rather than trying to maintain two separate locations," he said. "By merging Concord's design staff with the Missourian's, we can draw on the individual strengths of each designer to better fit the project, whether it is a Concord project or a Missourian project. I think it will improve the quality of work for both companies."

smoyers@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 137