| Thousands of years ago,
ancient Greece and its colorful mythology gave birth to the origins
of our company. Greek lore describes "Argus" as a
hundred-eyed beast who stands guard.
According
to Grecian legend of that era, a young money lender named Oracles
yearned for a bigger challenge than distributing and collecting coins.
The entrepreneurial and
visionary Oracles took some of his wages and purchased a small
sack-making business from a local man. While the
carrying "bags" were made of materials of the day, they
nonetheless proved to be an extremely popular and necessary item for
all walks of Greek life. Oracles became well known in his community as
not only a fair and hard-working business owner, but one who watched
over his investment with a vengeance. Over time, the townspeople began
calling him and his company "Argus," as his workaholic
personality did not allow for a separation of the man from the
business. His eyes were always watching.
The company became a
family-owned affair and was handed down from generation to generation,
moving from city to city and country to country as the years went by.
It contracted and expanded as the local economies ebbed and flowed.
Unfortunately, at one point in recorded history, the lineage stops.
For hundreds of years, there are no written words about the
sack-making Argus.
Then, in 1971 A.D., a
twenty-something accountant from Chicago named Jerome Starr appears to
have begun duplicating history.
Tired of his repetitive
accounting duties and yearning to buy his own business, he scraped
together enough money to purchase a small plastic bag making company
in Chicago. Mr. Starr was familiar with the company from doing its
books for five years. He took over a manufacturing plant which
contained only three bag converting machines and zero printing or
extruding capabilities. The company already had a name -- Aargus Poly
Bag.
Without knowledge of the
company's parallel ties to the Greek Argus, Jerry threw himself into
his work. Like his ancient alter-ego Oracles, Mr. Starr expanded his
bag-making business, doubling his converting capacity and adding a few
small extrusion lines almost immediately. But after only one year, a
tragic arson-set fire nearly dashed his dreams as quickly as they had
begun.
With fierce resolve and
determination, Mr. Starr refused to fold with the hand he had been
dealt. Armed with insurance money, he resurrected Aargus at the
current northwest suburban Chicago location it resides. Watching over
every minute aspect of his business with seemingly 100 eyes, he grew
the company to a 22-extrusion line, flexographic printing force which
it is today.
With the help of his wife,
Sherry, and his eldest son, Scott, Mr. Starr has led the family
business through three decades of prominence. And while he
begrudgingly has allowed some of the control of day-to-day decisions
to slip from his grasp, his eyes are always watching, just as they did
so many years ago. |
