Writer / Jamie Hergott

The way Greg Platts came about owning and operating Indy Ink and Toner can’t be described as anything less than serendipitous.

The store, situated on Rockville Road and Dan Jones in Avon, provides quality ink cartridges, ink cartridge refills and toner cartridge refills to individuals and businesses.

Platts and his dad have owned Indy Ink and Toner since December 2009. Earlier that year, Platts was unemployed after 15 years of working in restaurant management, and he was looking for work. He did what any responsible job-seeking man would do: he decided to print off a slew of resumes. To do so, he needed more ink in his printer. Not able to afford paying inflated prices for a new ink cartridge at a big box store, he stopped into Indy Ink and Toner.

The exchange there changed his life.

The store happened to be hiring. The woman behind the counter, whom he later found out was the owner, informed him it was only a part-time position paying $7.50. That wasn’t what Platts needed, so he told her to have a good afternoon and turned to leave.

“You wanna buy the place?” she said to him before he walked out the door.

“Buy the place?” Platts asked. “I came in here for ink and asking about a job, and now you’re asking me to buy the place?”

Long story short, Platts decided to talk it over with his dad. After meeting with the owner and discussing the possibility of this new venture, Platts and his dad bought the store six months later.

Besides selling ink cartridges and printer accessories, Platts refills some of the most popular ink cartridges. If he can’t refill your cartridge, he most likely carries a hi-quality compatible, replacement ink cartridge that will fit your printer. He uses only premium quality inks and provides a 100 percent satisfaction guarantee. Most items are available today in store, which beats searching the overwhelming aisles at big box stores or waiting two days for Amazon to bring it to your door. Speaking of which, he also ships. For orders over $100, shipping is free.

Platts also offers remanufactured and new compatible toner cartridges from leading suppliers for all printer brands. Each one is guaranteed to perform exactly the same as its brand name equivalent.

Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) companies such as HP, Brother, Canon and more began to put microchips in their cartridges in 2010 to prevent cartridges from being refilled. For a while, Platts was replacing the chips. But once manufacturers started to also redesign the ink well, he opted to simply sell remanufactured cartridges. The only caveat is that the customer may get a message on their computer saying that the cartridge isn’t a brand name cartridge. Platts says to simply acknowledge the message and move on. It won’t hurt your printer.

Platts serves a wide range of customers, from home-schooling moms to corporate businesses to local and out of town businesses. Platts’ biggest client is Cunningham Restaurant Group, which owns 32 different restaurants, including Charbonos and Stone Creek. He also serves many businesses right on Rockville, such as Arby’s, Taco Bell, and Jimmy John’s as well as insurance companies, dentists and doctors.

John Harshberger, District Manager of four different Jimmy John’s, including the Avon locations, loves shopping at Indy Ink and Toner because of the working relationship he has with Platts, not to mention the low cost and simplicity of stopping by. The two went to Avon High School together years ago, and both believe in shopping local.

“I come in here, and he knows exactly what I need,” Harshberger says. “I just tell him I need ink for my Samsung, and that’s it. He’s got it. He saves us thousands of dollars a year.”

That’s exactly what Platts wants to hear. Customer service is his top priority.

“Without it, people don’t want to come here,” Platts says. “I have the benefit of being a small business owner. I can do whatever I have to do to make the customer happy. People come here, they see me, the same guy who has been working behind the counter for the past 12 years, and they know they’ll get what they need.”

Indy Ink and Toner is located at 7900 E. US Highway 36, Suite E in Avon. You can give them a call at 317-209-1818 or visit them online at indyinkandtoner.com.

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