Phillips Litho Barely Existing

The economic woes of Phillips Litho’s parent company in Memphis, Master Graphics, have ended the once strong Springdale company’s day-to-day business operations as it was known for the last three decades.

Master Graphics, which purchased Phillips Litho in 1998, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2000 and will no longer do large printing projects for customers. Though a reduced sales staff will remain, Phillips has already been outsourcing work for clients’ to other area printing companies.

Phillips Litho founder Phil Phillips unsuccessfully attempted as late as December to buy back the company.

Master Graphics officials referred all calls to its public relations firm in California. And a spokeswoman there handling the Master Graphics account said she could not comment on Phillips Litho’s future.

Springdale Chamber of Commerce President Perry Webb could, and did.

“If Phil Phillips was still running the show this would have never happened,” Webb said. “It’s been tough to see a company that had been built up for a 30-year period get bogged down in a corporation like it has over the last couple of years. It’s very frustrating. Every time it looked like something was going to happen, someone would throw a monkey wrench into the equation.

“Nothing that has happened in Springdale with tremendous success has not happened without Phil Phillips being involved. That tells you something about him. There’s not a better example of what Springdale is all about than him. I’m sure at some point in the future you’ll hear more from the man.”

Phillips Litho will keep a small sales staff as well as some design and layout personnel for some projects.