Since it’s so important to me, I decided to give this topic a post of its own. Much of my late grandfather’s identity and public persona were directly linked to the company he founded, Tapco. His personality was larger than life and he was a big self-promoter. Those two traits, along with his great vision for the future are things that helped him become a successful entrepreneur. That’s not the same as a great business man. He’d eventually need my dad for that, but that’s another story.

For as long as I can remember, besides using his own image in brochures and his nickname for product names, my grandfather used the Tapco logo on all sorts of promotional items: watches, pens, pencils, notepads, tape measures, shirts, pants, hats, jackets, money clips, pocket calculators, and pocket knives amongst other things I can’t recall. If you can name it, there was probably a version made adorned with the Tapco logo. For so long, my life was inundated with all things Tapco. It even seemed that my grandfather’s wardrobe was entirely furnished by Tapco. It was both silly and brilliant at the same time.

The Tapco Logo – Known internally as “The dancing letters”

For more than 30 years, at trade shows, he’d wear a bright green sport coat (the company’s color) that he would tell people was “money green”. People began to stop by our booth at shows just to meet him or shake his hand. Because Tapco’s tools were entirely mechanical, we were particularly popular with the Amish.

One time, while I was traveling with the area sales rep in south-eastern Ohio, the rep and I stopped at an Amish bakery which sold hand-made outdoor furniture in addition to baked goods. While he was inside buying a pie, I waited outdoors by the furniture. A salesperson approached me and asked if I needed any help. He noticed the Tapco logo on my shirt (see what I’m saying?) and said, “Tapco, huh?” I said, “Yes, it’s the company I work for.” The salesperson replied, “Do you know Windy Marsh?”

When my grandfather died, I wanted to create the design for his headstone in order to honor his memory in two ways. First, was by having a headstone that would standout amongst the others, like he did in a crowd. Secondly, with the kind of “brand recognition” he had, I wanted to keep his name and his company’s logo linked. The granite has a greenish hue to it, but we couldn’t get anything approching the color of “money green”. I also wanted to make each letter a separate piece, but the headstone company said it would lead to it being vandalized. Here’s the resulting design:

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It definitely stands out.

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