Chris McMillen and Lesley Morgans (Credit: Woodlands Online)
The Woodlands Ink & Toner store was previously a Cartridge World franchise.
Woodlands Online reported on The Woodlands Ink & Toner store in The Woodlands, Houston, which has been in business since 2004 and which was formerly a Cartridge World franchise. The store sells OEM and remanufactured consumables, and is run by Chris McMillen and his father Glenn.
The company, as an “independently-owned business”, allows McMillen and his team to “provide better quality cartridges for a lower price”, with management and staff remaining the same despite the change from Cartridge World. The McMillens had “no previous experience” in consumables, but knew that a business dealing in cartridge “was needed in the area”.
The store’s original concept was for customers to “bring in their empty cartridges to be refilled”, with cleaning, refilling and testing undertaken, but due to time constraints and the increased complexity of newer cartridges, the company now relies on vendors “to provide recycled cartridges that have already been refilled and [are] ready to [be sold]”. In addition, the company keeps a “wide variety” of inkjet and toner cartridges for both new and older machines.
Chris McMillen stated: “We were the first in Houston to open a Cartridge World. I didn’t know anything about it, I was a graphic designer, but it looked like something we would enjoy doing. I know every cartridge out there. [The new concept for refilling means] there is no longer a wait, it reduces the return rate, and people can still buy recycled cartridges. We searched for a long time for really decent vendors here in the US that had a good product.
“This business has been so rewarding. It’s the little things. We get a lot of people coming in so they can print out family history and it’s wild. It’s really important to them, and I like that aspect. I really enjoy helping people out.”
Operations Manager Lesley Morgans is a local resident who’s lived in the area for 28 years, with McMillen noting that “it helps out a lot that she knows so many people, and it’s just a really nice atmosphere. We remember everybody and use first names”.