John Bobbitt, Former CGX/Western Litho President, Named President of McCormick Armstrong
After 20 years at the helm of McCormick Armstrong (McA), one of the nation's largest privately held printers, Chairman and CEO Jake Shaffer has hired John Bobbitt to take over the role as president of the company. Bobbitt will have day-to-day oversight of McA's printing, direct mail, catalog, fulfillment, distribution and other brand management operations. Shaffer will continue as chairman and CEO of McA, while devoting more of his time to its related companies: the agribusiness magazine High Plains Journal in Dodge City, Kan., and On Point, a printer of specialty products and high-end coffee table books in Kansas City, Kan.
Bobbitt brings to McA nearly 35 years of experience in printing, direct mail and political consulting. Prior to running his own political consulting firm in Houston, he served seven years as president of Media Solutions, a printing and fulfillment company. Additionally, he spent 24 years with the Consolidated Graphics (CGX) Western Litho plant in Houston, ultimately becoming president of the company.
"This is an exciting time for McCormick Armstrong, as well as for me, personally," Shaffer said. "All three of our companies are on the cusp of explosive growth. Finding a successor like John Bobbitt-someone who has run a highly profitable multi-million-dollar printing business for decades-lets me move away from the daily operations at McA with confidence. I know that both McA's leadership and business plan are in absolutely capable hands. I'm eager to focus more attention to our other publishing and printing businesses and, perhaps, take a vacation for the first time in years."
McCormick Armstrong was founded in Wichita as McCormick Press in 1901, making it one of the oldest continuously operating companies in Kansas. McCormick Armstrong, High Plains Journal and On Point are all family-owned entities.
"Jake's integrity, loyalty and sense of commitment to the family business is one of the key reasons I came to Wichita," Bobbitt said. "Privately held companies operate with a value structure that lets them treat employees like family-and that breeds trust. You don't see that in publicly held companies these days. Common sense values and trust shape our business philosophy and our customer relationships, and that makes McA exceptional in the industry today."
