G-2 Graphic Service is used to large orders, given its big-name clients like Burbank’s Walt Disney Co. and the casino Harrah’s Las Vegas. And the holiday season is no exception. Each year the North Hollywood printer stocks up on extra ink and paper – and 750 pounds of sugar, 540 pounds of chocolate and 180 pounds of butter … huh? Those are the ingredients for 800 boxes of fudge made by founder and Chief Executive John Beard; his son, John Jr., G-2’s vice president; his grandchildren; and several of his 49 employees. The company has been making fudge since its first year in 1969, when Beard’s late wife offered to make candy as gifts for clients given the firm’s humble budget. And they’ve never stopped. “I don’t know how we could,” said John Jr., 50. “What the hell was Mom thinking back then?” In the first week of December, the younger Beard’s kitchen had six burners on the stove going at once, each with a pot of bubbling butter and sugar, on constant rotation from morning to evening. The elder Beard’s new wife, Barbara; his granddaughter Laura; and G-2’s Marketing Director Dan Borunda all helped on one shift. Grandson Jack, 9, pitched in after school. When employees finished a shift at the store, they headed over to the house. Beard Sr. seemed well under his 72 years as he joked with his helpers who worked on their feet for hours. “There is no budget. It’s something we have to do,” he said. Each 2-pound slab of chocolate was placed in a box that was printed at G-2, and employees hand delivered almost every one. Steve Gerdes, senior art director at Walt Disney Records, has been enjoying the Beards’ fudge since 1984. This year, Gerdes enjoyed a box all to himself. “I have a block sitting here right now, and I’m trying not to eat it,” he said. “And I’d like to stress the word ‘try.’” – Bailey Brewer
Printer Fudges a Lot For Holidays
