Alternaprint, a combined custom screen printing and comic book store, will open on April 1. Located on North Howell Street, the screen printing and custom shirt-design business will take over the storefront formerly occupied by Threads, between The Hunt Club and Jilly Beans Coffee House.
Andrew and Catie Gibbs, Alternaprint owners and Hillsdale natives, moved back to the area in September, and have been running their eco-friendly printing business since October. Alternaprint was formerly located near Chicago, Illinois.
The Gibbses look forward to running the store in the less stressful, small-town atmosphere of Hillsdale, where their decreased workload will leave more time for detail-oriented projects.
“In Chicago, we had to be fast. People are faster there, it’s just a different way of life, so we got used to turning things around quick,” Andrew Gibbs said. “Here, it’s a lot slower, more laid back, but I can’t sit on a job for too long — it drives me nuts now. So people here like it because we’re quick.”
Since the business’s re-location to downtown, the Gibbses decided to take advantage of the venue’s space by expanding the business into a combined printing and comic book shop.
“We decided to move it here, and bring something new into the area,” Catie Gibbs said.
“It’s a lot different from every other shop here,” Andrew Gibbs added. “Hopefully that stands out.”
The inspiration for adding a comic book inventory to their screen printing business came from experiences while living in Chicago. Comic book fan Andrew Gibbs noted that the city contained many comic book stores.
“In Chicago, it was huge; there was a comic book shop everywhere,” Andrew Gibbs said. “Every little suburb, every neighborhood had a comic book shop. Moving back here, the nearest one was like an hour away.”
Perceiving the potential demand for comic books in Hillsdale, the couple decided to pursue the business concept. They plan to carry a wide variety of comics to suit a range of customers’ interests.
The store already has more than 100 comic book titles and will carry issues from several months back so customers can catch up on a series. Readers will be able to custom order comic books not carried in-store, too.
The couple expects that the comic book inventory and children’s toys and art supplies will also add to the artistic, community-oriented ambience they desire for the shop.
“Screen printing and T-shirts are cool and artistic, and that’s our main business, but no one’s going to come hang out in a t-shirt screen printing shop,” Andrew Gibbs said.
The couple anticipates that the two facets of their business will complement each other. The storefront inventory will draw in potential screen printing customers, as well as more comic book fans. They hope to begin hosting community-oriented events soon after opening.
The couple is hard at work preparing the storefront for the grand opening on April 1. In addition to adding colorful paint to brighten the walls, they built shelving units to display the comics.
“Being art people, we didn’t want to go and buy shelves and stuff like that, we wanted to put our touch on everything, so everything in here we’ve built,” Andrew Gibbs said.
Jane Steward, owner of Smith’s Flowers and former head of the Hillsdale Business Association, said Alternaprint will benefit Hillsdale’s economy.
“Anytime that there’s a new business that comes in town, anytime there’s a new store, that’s going to be viable for our community,” Steward said.
Based on her work with Alternaprint, Steward predicts a favorable future for the business.
“I had them print some sweatshirts for us, and they did exactly what they said they were going to do,” Steward said. “Just knowing there’s another really great shop in town that has good customer service and can follow through makes our town all the better.”
Bill Lundberg, Hayden Park Fitness/Recreation Director and Assistant Professor of Sports Studies, also has high hopes for the business.
Lundberg worked with Alternaprint this fall when he ordered shirts for the Wild Bill 5K during Hillsdale College’s homecoming week.
“I think they’re an ideal business for that kind of thing,” Lundberg said. “It’s exciting to see people that are young and enthusiastic and ready to serve and help in the community.”
