Paul Leavy/The Valdosta Daily Times

VALDOSTA — Following a $4 million expansion, the purchase of all new equipment, a new showroom and the creation of new products, all since February, U.S. Press Chief Executive Officer Kent Buescher is eager to showcase the business to current and potential customers.

U.S. Press will be hosting an open house every afternoon this week, as well as a series of Lunch and Learn seminars on marketing each day this week, and a Business After Hours event Tuesday from 5 to 7 p.m.

“My goal is to help people better market their businesses,” said Buescher. “We replaced every press, changed software, and moved into new lines of work. We can print more capacity now and can literally print on any surface, from ceiling tiles to carpet — if you can imagine it, I can print on it.”

Buescher and his wife, Dawn, founded U.S. Press in 1981, and sold it in 1999 to Nationwide Graphics to concentrate on building their other business, Wild Adventures Theme Park. Dawn continued in her position with U.S. Press and Kent retained the title of president/consultant for the company’s new owners. When the opportunity arose to purchase U.S. Press back, the Bueschers did in February 2008, nearly nine years to the day from the day they sold it.

Buescher intends to grow the company significantly as it was smaller when he bought it back than when he sold it. He’s made a number of changes already, but he said none has made his customers happier than eliminating the smell. The new equipment doesn’t use the same chemicals as the old presses, and the entire process is now green and odorless.

“They walk into our showroom now and can tell right away. There’s a big difference now that the smell is gone,” he said.

His expertise and background in marketing is what spurred Buescher to create the business 27 years ago, and he’s excited to be able to bring those elements to his new and existing customers. The new equipment has allowed the company to significantly expand its product lines, and they now produce grand format graphics, including fleet graphics, vehicle wraps, signs and oversized banners.

Buescher’s enthusiasm is infectious, as he describes all of the marketing materials he can assist customers with. “Campaign signs have been really big this year!” he said. “We have customers in all 50 states, even Hawaii and Alaska, and it’s exciting to me to educate them and help them grow their businesses.”

In addition to the large format graphics that U.S. Press can turn around fairly quickly, and inexpensively, Buescher said they also have the capability to totally customize pieces for customers.

“If they can provide us with a good database, then we can customize each piece to that customer’s preferences. If they only like red cars, that’s all they’ll see. If it’s an educational institution looking to market to high school juniors, and the student is only interested in science, then that’s how their material will be produced.”

Buescher said the response rate to customized pieces increases to about 40 percent from the average of 1 or 2 percent for mass mailings.

“Another mistake we see is when companies cut their marketing budgets, especially in hard times.” Buescher said it gives customers the impression that the company is in trouble, and business that may have only slightly fallen off may take a serious downturn and cause even greater issues.

For Buescher, returning to U.S. Press full time as the owner once again, his life has come full circle and it’s been a very educational ride. Once the small petting zoo became Wild Adventures, his life forever changed. But Buescher has the satisfaction of seeing the park he created continue as a successful venture under the new ownership of Herschend Family Entertainment.

“Who would have thought that I could get a million and a half people to come to Valdosta, Ga.?” he said. “The experience was incredible, but the best part for me was opening the gates everyday. If you do a good job and help someone else, then you’ve accomplished something.”

When the theme parks sold in late 2007, Buescher retained his position at Cypress Gardens, which he and a group of investors had purchased and recreated under the Adventure Parks umbrella. The hurricanes that blew through Florida in the midst of renovations doomed the park’s future, and ultimately the company’s as well. Buescher and the new owners parted ways after differences in philosophy on running the park, including seeing all of the concerts, etc. he had planned canceled, Buescher returned to Valdosta full time and into a new era in his old business.

“If you build the right product, let customers know about it, and give them a reason to do business with you, you’ll be successful no matter what you do,” he said.