The equality of men and
women continues to be a constant battle, Many women are left to believe that
there is pressure when it comes to starting their own business, pressure to
exercise their rights and be taken seriously or in some cases to realize that
bringing a lifelong dream to life is possible. Thankfully, it is not the case
for all women. This was certainly not the case for Diane Horton, a strong and intellectual
woman who had a dream and saw no pressure in making this dream a reality. A
woman who believes that all women can be taken seriously, start their own
businesses and make the best choices in life for themselves.
In 1975, a 30 something Dianne
Horton opened her own business, VIP. Throughout
the history of the company adaptation to meet the customers’ needs shape our
services and product offering. As VIP
evolved from a answering service to an office service and solutions provider,
the name also evolved to VIP Office Furniture and Supply Inc. The staff still refers to the company as VIP
and we proudly celebrate 44 years
in business in 2019 and to share our history with you.
At its start VIP was an
answering service which operated 24 hours, 7 days a week. Dianne and two other employees provided a
reliable way for local business, Attorneys’ offices, and Doctors’ offices to
continue to communicate even when their staff was unavailable. “You leave, It rings, We answer.” was a
simplistic slogan that summed up the services offered. Dianne recognized the need to adapt to an
ever-changing business world and made the decision to add advertising
services, typing services, bookkeeping, bill collecting, and office supplies as
a convenience for her customers. In 1983 VIP changed their name to VIP Printing
and Office Supplies to better reflect the products and services offered.
By 1994 VIP Printing and
Office Supplies. had an established customer based and proved to be a strong,
stable company. At this time Dianne became
aware and acted on the opportunity to acquire Bagwell Office Products. Bagwell paralleled VIP in the industry
providing similar office products and services.
The acquisition was an ideal way to better serve local businesses and
the community. The merger of the two
businesses and expansion of the geographic customer service area produced a
demand to have a second office location in Chatham County.
In 1995 VIP acquired
School Days and added an additional product vertical of school supplies. The acquisition of School Days gave VIP the
opportunity to begin partnerships with local schools and educators. School
supplies brought color and variety to VIP’s retail store with products like
construction paper, bulletin board sets, colored pencils and markers as well as
other educational supplies that were added to the in-stock inventory.
In 2000 VIP acquired
Office Furniture USA and became VIP Office Furniture and Supply. The furniture
division at VIP offers transactional and contract furniture solutions, specification,
designs, sales, installation and reconfiguration services. Our Furniture division continues to grow and
has driven revenues that match our office supply division.
In 2003, VIP was awarded
GSA Schedule 75. GSA Office Products Schedule 75 provides qualified vendors a
way to offer products through GSA Advantage and DOD EMALL to federal government
procurement officers. Late 2003, VIP was awarded Office Furniture Schedule
72, Army BPA, Air Force BPA and MILSTRIP. The combination of awards afforded VIP an
avenue to provide a complete office solution to our local military
installations and to installations throughout the United States.
In 2014, VIP’s printing department
met the request of local Architects, Zoning Commissioner and commercial
businesses by adding large format printing to our services to answer demands for printing blue prints,
banners, and larger marketing pieces. The large format printing has proved to be a
great way to show our support for community events and military homecomings.
In 2018, Dianne learned
that another local woman owned business was for sale. The other business paralleled VIP’s values
and desire to partner with local businesses.
VIP instantly recognized this as a great opportunity to keep local
business thriving and acquired The Paper Clip in Garden City. The combined knowledge of staff provides our
customers with over 100 Years of industry experience.
VIP continues to offer excellent services and
office solutions to many businesses, the military, as well as to our local
communities in Georgia. VIP’s mission is to be the premier supplier of business
products to our valued customers by providing the utmost in quality, commitment
and care.
Dianne Horton’s vision of
building her own business has not only offered jobs to many people but has
grown to give back to the community in various ways.
You can visit us on the
web,
email us, or call 800-566-5546. Want to stop in and see us face to face? Our Hinesville location is our corporate headquarters located at
109 Central Ave, and our satellite office in Garden City is at
421 US Highway 80 West. With a full line of office and business supplies, we are sure to have what you need and we'd love to see you.
The Association of the United States Army is a nonprofit
educational and professional development association serving America’s Army and
supporters of a strong national defense. AUSA provides a voice for the Army,
supports the Soldier, and honors those who have served in order to advance the
security of the nation.
