history

Imagination Publishing’s evolution was gradual: from a small custom magazine publisher; to a custom publisher with an expanding focus on digital content; to a custom media provider with an in-house recording/editing studio; to an agency that produces strategic custom publishing plans that utilize all distribution channels.

Today, Imagination Publishing is the premier custom publishing agency for B2B, B2C and (through Association Growth Partners) association clients. And although we’ve always been in the custom publishing business, the transformation of the industry, and our company, is amazing.

Highlights

Custom content was, and is, the linchpin of our success. Our expertise in producing, distributing and marketing custom content for our clients is our reason for being.

In 1994 Imagination Publishing was founded by Jim Meyers. Rebecca Rolfes and Doug Kelly rounded out the staff. The office was located above a Giordanno’s pizza parlor with a single client – American Airlines. We had to create a reputation and establish an image in order to compete with larger publishers. So we always went to client meetings with fully developed ideas, prototypes and mock-ups. Later that year, we secured our first association client, the Illinois Bankers Association; our first B2C client, Pier 1 Imports; and our first B2B client, Staples.
In 1996 Imagination Publishing moved to a bigger office in downtown Chicago and added digital, ad sales, and translation capabilities. Motorola became our first technology client, and the National Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds became our first national association client.
In 1997 Imagination Publishing purchased Baumer Financial Publishing in Los Angeles. (It’s president, Dick Baumer, remains with Imagination today,) We also added a few financial services clients, including Wells Fargo Bank and E*TRADE.
In 2000 With 30 employees, Imagination Publishing moved to a larger location in an industrial corridor (Elston Ave.), and Imagination was repositioned as a custom media company.
In 2005 Imagination moved to its present location at 600 W. Fulton St. in downtown Chicago. Our branding included the phrase “Passionate Custom Media,” to reflect the fact that we were (and are) passionate about our clients and their businesses, custom media, and each other. We reorganized the company into content-specific business units: association, B2C, B2B, financial services, technology. We also built an in-house recording/editing studio and added a full-service digital media department.
In 2009 A new division of Imagination, Association Growth Partners, debuts. The consultancy creates content marketing programs to increase the revenues and membership of B2B associations. Imagination’s digital media capabilities now are integrated throughout the organization. In fact, we don’t even separate content into “digital” or “print” anymore. The content and its distribution channel are determined by our clients’ business goals and our evaluation of the target audience. We create the content and distribute it in whatever form, whenever and wherever the audience wants to consume it.