Advantages founder Fran Biderman-Gross has risen above several obstacles throughout her career in order to create a successful business that continues to grow.
Shortly after she and her husband David had graduated from college, they created the printing company, Advantages, in 1992. Biderman-Gross said that, at the time, David was leaving his family business and looking for another one to get involved with. They observed the quantity of printing work being done by Staples and local stationery stores, they decided that printing would be a good business to get into.
The two began by sharing an envelope machine with a family friend and started printing items in black and white and one or two colors. They eventually expanded and teamed up with another family friend to purchase a four-color machine.
In 2001, David passed away after having been diagnosed with terminal cancer in June of 1999. At that time, Biderman-Gross said that she made the decision to continue with the company and figure out how to make it her own.
“It was like one of our children,” she said of the business. “It was David’s legacy.”
Biderman-Gross said that it took her about a year-and-a-half to find the strength to push forward. Once she got to that point, she began to “reassemble the staff and reinvent what Advantages was about.”
The company now works under the motto of “get noticed.” With a great team of designers built together over the past several years, Advantages offers a full strategy executed from conception to completion, along with their 15 years of printing experience. They have also developed a full service of custom premiums and promotional items for every occasion and event.
“My specialty is really helping clients analyze what they need,” Biderman-Gross said. “We want to help companies get noticed. That’s what we do.”
Last year, Advantages, which is based in Flushing, became certified as a New York City and New York State Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise. Biderman-Gross said that it is a way for her to get some doors opened.
“I think women in general who are strong and powerful are definitely challenged in the corporate world,” she said.
Biderman-Gross said that some of the key factors in her success have been hiring the right people, challenging the company’s status quo and understanding the balance between being dedicated to the job and knowing that personal lives are important too. Whether hiring employees or marketing new clients, the right fit makes all the difference.
“I think the most rewarding part for me is building a company that has ethics and morals and as a place where employees become a family and you watch everyone’s personal growth succeed,” Biderman-Gross said.
For next year, the goal for Advantages is to add importing to its list of services. Biderman-Gross said that by the end of 2008 she wants to “take an additional high level design or manufacturing ability to import and design premiums that are custom.”
“That would add a tremendous edge, enabling us to deal with Fortune 500 and 100 companies,” she said.
Advantages is located at 78-38 Parsons Boulevard in Flushing. For more information, visit www.advantages.net or call 718-820-0688.
