The romance of Archies

For anyone growing up in the 1980s and 1990s, the name Archies spells romance, with fancy greeting cards and assorted stationery and gift items. In an era before the digital boom, Archies gave youngsters a means to share their feeling through cards. Jagdish Moolchandani, executive director, Archies, rightly claims, “We invented the Valentine’s Day in India.”

10 Jul 2019 | By Rahul Kumar

Jagdish Moolchandani, executive director, Archies, at the front desk

Greeting cards remain a significant business for Archies. The company holds 50% market share of greeting cards in India

The sprawling shopfloor at the Manesar plant is an ideal example how a printing company shopfloor should be

From the beginning, the company’s motto has been to offer quality products which are unique

Jagdish Moolchandani, executive director, Archies, with the company’s Ryobi five-colour plus coater press

Up next, Archies is seriously looking to capture the paper bag market

One of Archies’ bestselling products is its permanent calendars with quotes on various subjects. The company has a dedicate team to develop products and develop content for it.

A fitness enthusiast, Jagdish Moolchandani, executive director, Archies, finds a way to mix business with pleasure by doing regular plant inspections on his cycle.

The exteriors of the Archies plant in Manesar, Haryana

Starting with printing songbooks for popular pop bands like Abba, Archies found its niche in greeting cards in the 1980s and ruled the market for the next two decades, selling its products through its franchisee across the country. The company went public in 1995.

In the new millennium, as the cards market went down, the company reinvented itself through its stationery products and gift items. Today, the company is seriously looking into the paper bag market, with plans to make serious investments.

The PrintWeek India team recently visited the plant in Manesar, Haryana, to see Archies at work. Here’s presenting a few snapshots (Look for the feature on Archies in August 2019 issue of PrintWeek India).