Editor's Note: Kevin Howes has announced his retirement from the RSA, and he's heading to the slopes! In this interview, he discusses the many career moves that brought him finally to the RSA. Comments from some people who know him well follow.
Ed Avis: Congrats on retiring, Kevin! Take us back to the beginning – how did you get started in reprographics?
Kevin Howes: I went to college in Baltimore at Johns Hopkins and received my undergraduate degree in Political Science in 1985. Incidentally, that is where I met my wife Marcia, so it was a win-win. Initially, I started working in her family’s business, a small chemical manufacturing business, while simultaneously starting a master's program in management at Hopkins at night. After a few years into my graduate program and working full-time, I was offered a manager position with Print-O-Stat in their Baltimore region.
Avis: What did you learn at Print-O-Stat that helped you down the road?
Howes: Interesting question Ed, and the answer is quite a bit. I entered the industry at a time when design and engineering were being done the same way it was done for the previous two centuries, with pencil and pen on paper. At the same time, the technology we take for granted today was emerging quickly. Pen plotters were in most firms and larger engineering firms had electrostatic plotters. However, most of our customers still had significant investments in draftsmen or hand-drawn design. I think my very first sale was a Vemco chalkboard drafting system for an automobile plastics manufacturer that supported the GM plant in Baltimore. So, I had to learn old school, and then the emerging technologies as they were coming along. We still sold a lot of tabletop blueprint machines from Blu-Ray, Diazit, you name them. But Xerox was starting to make its footprint and change the industry. And I think the first seminal moment was the affordability and the introduction of plain paper copying by Xerox. Print-O-Stat was one of the first to have the 2510 dealership, and they were a big Xerox reseller. On the repro side, you still had photographic reproduction, wash-off mylars, and pin bar drafting. So, it was a fascinating time.
Avis: Were you just selling the 2510s, or using them, too?
Howes: Well, at Print-O-Stat we had kind of a neat setup. Every branch had demo units in the lobby, and we did both. The beauty of that was, we'd put a demo unit in, and you'd run so many feet on it. Then you could write it down a little bit and you could sell it more competitively, and bring another one in. So, the main focus was to get out there and sell them and get market share and convert those old desktop blueprint machines to Xerox machines. But at Print-O-Stat, we ran walk-in prints and effectively were demoing at the same time.
Avis: How long were you there?
Howes: I was there for two years, and I then got an offer to go down to Rowley-Scherr in DC. It was a bigger position, primarily initially selling reprographics and equipment. Within a year, I became a sales manager, managing two guys and having a territory myself. I was covering our larger FMs at that time. I probably had six or seven around the Baltimore region, and those were staffed FMs.
Rowley was one of the places I got to see a 3D walkthrough program of a potential design project. A company had developed the software and wanted us to resell it, but it was going to be like $1,000 a second. $30,000 for a 30-second thing. And of course, think about where the PC and the computer industry were back then, from a platform and power standpoint. So, it never did take off for us, but I was beginning to get exposed to some of the things that were coming down the pike.
That was actually one of my favorite jobs early on. I mean, we were in the high-flying days of repro and having a great time as a young team. I am still close to some of my sales bullpen pals except now we’re the old guys. It was also the '90s, just after the savings and loan crisis and the recession kind of came down the East Coast, and things got tough. I was there for about two and half years when I was introduced to CAD-1 (which was then called CAD/CAM), a semi-national regional reseller of electrostatic and CAD-related products. Hence the name.
Avis: Tell me about CAD-1.
Howes: I was hired as the Region Manager for the DMV. They were one of the largest, if not the largest AutoCAD resellers back in the day. They had a division that sold supplies, generally to electrostatic customers. CAD-1 was the most progressive company I worked for up to that time. We had T1 lines from Dayton to all of our locations. We centralized all of our ordering so everything went through the system in Dayton, Ohio. We had Bloomberg-like dumb terminals where we could see sales, new sales orders, and shipment data up to the second. The screen would flash over and update as soon as you put an order in. My boss, Jeff Levine, created a little inter-branch competition where we could see what the guys in California were doing, or what the guys in Atlanta were doing, and what a particular rep was doing. Your number was right there for everyone to see. Call it virtual daily stack rankings.
Again it was the early '90s but we were already doing scanned UPS shipments out the back door with the tracking number on the invoice and that kind of thing. So, that was the next step up for me in a very progressive company operationally. I was with them for seven years, and in the end, I was the graphics marketing manager responsible for developing relationships with OEMs like Avery, 3M, and other media companies.
Another seminal moment happened during my time at Cad-1: the introduction of inkjet printing coinciding with the strong growth of PPC printing. Both of these developments changed our business and we quickly turned to the supply opportunities in display graphics. CAD electrostatic sales, drafting, and pen plotter sales were quickly declining and being replaced by inkjet. Then in the fall of '97, I jumped over to Océ.
Avis: Why?
Howes: Personally, I wanted to get to the OEM level. That was attractive to me. As a fairly young guy still, I thought that would offer a chance for learning and a different experience. Océ Imaging Supplies was just really developing its graphic line of inkjet media. So, I got hired as a digital color specialist because of my experience primarily at CAD-1 and my graphics background. We were developing dealers to sell the color line of imaging supplies products within the reprographic channel, but then stepping outside that channel, whether it was sign suppliers or a photographic supplier. Back then, those were all distinct channels adopting wide-format graphic printing.
Avis: What happened next?
Howes: In 2001 my wife, who’s an engineer, was working for a French chemical manufacturing company, and got the opportunity for our family to move to France. So initially I thought I'd be able to stay with Océ, but they couldn't make a position happen in France. Our family moved over, and I was very quickly able to get a job with a company called Regma Solutions. They were looking to get into the graphics media business like Océ had, but they were much smaller.
While I didn't speak French, I was desperately trying to learn, and they took a chance and hired me because they had a global export business and the need for someone to drive their coated inkjet business. They had customers throughout Asia, South America, and certainly Europe. I was actually working with their small R&D department to develop products. I quickly realized that if we were going to do this on any kind of scale, we were going to need to buy in and rebrand to supplement our limited coating capabilities. So, I made a relationship with an Asian manufacturer on one product that we called “Le Tout en un,” The All-in-One in English. At that time, it was a product that could serve multiple applications. It was sort of a photographic finished product but had good tear resistance, so it could address high color demands and limited outdoor applications.
Avis: How good did your French get?
Howes: I learned enough that I actually started to dream in French, which was very unsettling the first time it happened. It woke me up from a dead sleep. Amazingly, a good Bordeaux or two got my French to come out. I'm a sales guy at heart and a communicative guy. As you know, in Europe they speak English a lot more than we speak any other language. So, I did have the ability to speak English to folks when I needed to. The more challenging part was when we had meetings and it was all in French. But when we went to Asia they needed my English, because that was and probably still is the international business language.
Avis: How long were you in France?
Howes: We were only there 14 months though we were supposed to be there for three years. It was 2001 and 9/11 happened. We went there in January, and in September the great tragedy happens, and that was a very unsettling time. So, my wife's company decided to call her back to the U.S.
Avis: So where did you end up?
Howes: Xerox. They recruited 12 of us nationally to sell a product called the X2, an oil-based piezo printer. The feature set or the sales benefit was that it was three times faster than anything that was in the market. At that point, HP had the DesignJets 2500 or 3500 aqueous inkjet printers, which were quite established in market share, but the X2 was three times as fast. The downside of the X2 was that because it was oil-based, the colors were a little on the flat side. At three times the speed, they were also three times the cost. Initially we were hired to build a dealer channel, which I had a lot of experience doing at that point. And then Xerox being Xerox at that time, in December they let us all go.
Avis: And then what?
Howes: I went back to my wife’s family firm for a while, and then in 2004 a company called ICI Imagedata came knocking with a position. ICI stands for Imperial Chemical Industries, and you could think of them as the DuPont of the UK at the time. They had a business unit manufacturing thermal dye sublimation ribbons used in the instant photography business. That technology was also used to print secure driver's licenses and secure IDs, which was fascinating. We also had business in coating film products. We manufactured a product similar to Xerox's Never Tear paper, which basically was a film. I was the U.S. manager for that business.
One of my favorite projects I worked on was a process that used an inkjet-coated packaging-type film for the decoration of three-dimensional objects. These films have a lower crystalline structure such that when the heat hits them, they'll deform. From that, we created a 3D printing process called Pictaflex. We partnered with a company in Scotland to build a heat press that delivers the heat and vacuum pressure to wrap the film around an object. You could decorate a mouse, laptop cover, or something that was primarily 2D, but even curved. You'd put it in this press, you shut the lid, you heat it up, you draw a vacuum, and the film would wrap around the product, and transfer the image from the film to the product.
But all good things come to an end, and the ICI mothership was sold to AkzoNobel, which did not want to retain our division. I stayed and managed the sales and marketing teams until the unit was divested.
Avis: So you were again looking for a job?
Howes: Yes, then I joined Dave Cich at CET Color for a short stint as the Western Region Dealer Manager. Dave and I worked together at both Cad-1 and Océ and he was a good friend. CET was in startup mode and was developing the channel for their highly competitive UV Flatbed and Roll to Roll Printers.
I was only there about nine months when a headhunter called because a company called Delphax Technologies was looking for a VP of sales. Delphax was a company that actually used to be part of Xerox, and they were famous for making ion deposition technology, which was a toner-based transfer method. It was more of a course toner for high-speed roll-fed printing. We had equipment that could print 2,000 images a minute. These things sounded like aircraft engines when printing at that speed. The problem was, the technology just could not deliver, even in black-and-white, a good enough graphic gray tone quality to continue to compete against the Canon Konica and Ricoh printers. So the CEO and the board started looking at different technologies, and they got tied up with Memjet.
Delphax designed the Elan, a B2 press based on the Memjet technology with two 8.5” heads across the print width. Unlike the rest of the Memjet OEM partners, Delphax designed its own engine to create this B2 press. I was hired as the VP of Sales and Marketing to launch the press back in 2012 at DRUPA. We got some initial orders, but it was a very hard technology to get to the graphic standard required to compete in that market. When it was clear that we couldn’t meet our market plan, I decided to leave Delphax and joined RTI-Digital, a Memjet wide-format manufacturer. All of the experiences with the Memjet technology at both Delphax and RTI were still good experiences. I got to meet some talented people, and I gained an understanding of commercial print and the changing wide-format marketplaces. I'm a person who believes things happen for a reason, and all that experience brought me to the RSA in 2016.
Avis: Tell me about that – how did you get the RSA position?
Howes: I received a call out of the blue from Theresa Williams at Azon, who I've been friends with, going back 30 years to my CAD-1 days. She just said, "Hey, there's a position available and I think you're perfect for it, knowing you." And I'm like, "Well, tell me about it." She pointed me to Michael Shaw and the rest is history.
Avis: What was it like going to a reprographics organization after being in the manufacturing world?
Howes: Even though I came into the industry with a lot of experience, I had some learning to do after being away for a decade or more. I'm grateful for Keith Cox at Synnex. He really helped bring me up to speed on construction technology and some of the opportunities happening now for the reprographic industry. Once I got the lay of the land, it helped me identify some of the opportunities I was able to bring to the RSA like 3D scanning, Leica, and now today, Matterport. Also, the Epson Business Inkjet program has been a success. I'm pretty proud of the fact that, even though Epson Wide Format knows the reprographics industry, the particular business unit that was bringing the business inkjet printers to market had no idea who we were. And today there are reprographic companies in the RSA and elsewhere having good success selling business technology solutions.
Avis: What do you feel was your biggest accomplishment at the RSA?
Howes: The Epson program was an important opportunity that I was able to spot, and we’ve got some members doing very well with that. From an office standpoint, operationally, I leaned on my experience from Cad-1 to modernize and create a digital office workflow. When the pandemic hit, we turned out the lights and turned on the switches in our homes, and people thought we were still in the office. Our transition was seamless in supporting our members from multiple remote work locations.
Also, speaking about the pandemic, it was a big event during my time in RSA leadership. One of the things I'm proud of is that within two weeks, we had all of our members on weekly calls at the height of the pandemic talking about PPP, talking about tax programs, talking about best practices and what's going to happen.
Because of our family business connection, I was able to immediately source PPP, hand sanitizer, and masks when they were impossible to find. That enabled members to keep employees safely in their shops and operating. Thank God my brother-in-law, who runs the business, had a very good position with global manufacturers. I was able to get some offshore-made N95s. We did what we had to and I'm pleased with the response that we were able to come up with at that time on behalf of our members. I am also pleased that our staff begged to come back to the office after 5 weeks when Colorado allowed us to return. We realized how much we missed our daily interactions.
Avis: So what’s next for you?
Howes: Spending more time on the slopes. Spending more time in South Florida. Spending more time in our travel trailer visiting national parks and exploring North America. Spending more time with our three grandchildren. We’ve had enough time with our kids, ha ha! Realistically, I’m still helping in the transition to the new executive director, Stephanie Shark, and I’ll gladly make myself available for consulting whenever it’s needed.
Avis: Thank you, and enjoy your retirement!
Comments from people who know Kevin well
Kevin has done a fantastic job of leading the RSA members and the employees of the RSA through one of the most turmoil times our industry has ever faced. One of my first conversations with Kevin back in 2016 was telling him about the technology changes he would be responsible in helping the RSA navigate. Remember, new technologies were just being launched at that time and a worldwide pandemic was on the horizon that no one could predict. I think it’s safe to say that Kevin took a few punches early on as the Director of the RSA but each time he stood back up and became strong. I admire the way Kevin was able to make changes and learn from past experiences.
Over the years I’ve become good friends with Kevin and look forward to seeing him enjoy retirement. Heck, he was texting me last night from the ski slopes regarding one of our customers he ran into on the slopes. I asked him if there was a way to pay him a sales commission while he’s skiing. While I will miss my weekly call with Kevin, I’m happy to see Kevin and his wife, Marcia, riding off into the sunset.
Mark Langdon, President, Eastern Engineering
I’m happy for Kevin that he is retiring at an age young enough to enjoy the slopes, his
grandchildren and his RV. While he assured me he would not retire during my term as President, COVID happened and we all aged and thought more about what really mattered in life. I appreciate the years of service he put in for the RSA members.
Following only Mark Beilman as an Executive Director for our group, he had big shoes to fill. And being the intelligent man that he is, he enabled Mark Beilman to consult with us so that we were able to have the best of both worlds – Mark’s knowledge and dedication paired with Kevin’s uncanny ability to work well with members, vendors and employees alike.
Kevin’s enthusiasm during the tough times of COVID was unwavering, which I appreciated. He was able to parlay our meetings to be content that we could all use to support our organizations, which was very helpful to me. It was a time of feeling alone, and the group Zooms helped me keep on track and in touch with other members.
Kevin’s knowledge of our industry has been a tremendous help. Kevin could find new vendor opportunities due to the width and breadth of his experience and knowledge, something all reprographers crave! Kevin will remain a friend to many of us, and we hope he doesn’t go too far away! A part-time consulting gig is in his future!
Luci Miller, President, Miller Imaging & Digital Solutions
In 2016 when I found out that the new RSA director graduated from Johns Hopkins University, I was a bit disappointed – I was hoping for someone from a more distinguished Ivy League school. I’m kidding. Kidding! Kevin has been a steady, dynamic leader in the reprographics industry. I was fortunate enough to serve on the board of the RSA in 2018 – I had been very involved in the color graphics side of the business, but was new to the equipment side. Kevin introduced me to other members, manufacturers and helped to educate me on this side of the business by involving me in conversations and committees of more seasoned owners. He has answered thousands of questions, and has helped me think through critical issues facing our industry. I couldn’t be where I am now, and what I am doing now with Lynn Imaging, without the friends and colleagues who have surrounded me – and Kevin is one of the key leaders that has helped me along the way. I know many in the RSA would agree!
Shelby Lynn Marshall, vice president of business development, Lynn Imaging
I have worked with Kevin Howes for over 5 years as a Board Member of the RSA. As the Executive Director of the Cooperative he demonstrated outstanding leadership and exceptional business acumen. He was exceptionally strong with regard to our vendor programs and the relationships that they involved. Kevin was always quick to jump on a member's concern regardless of its origin. He was focused on the future of the coop and the value proposition that the association offered. As a member, I respected and trusted Kevin. He was a pleasure to work with and I very much enjoyed our friendship that developed over the years. I am sure I am not alone in that sentiment.
Tony Westbrook, RSA Member