Kolossos

I’ve been using them regularly for several years for a nonprofit I work with. After some initial bumps in the road, I am very pleased with their reliable service and excellent pricing. When there have been problems, they always gave us a credit or redid it. I bring them somewhat complex, color jobs with binding so there’s lots of room for errors. Often the issues have been caused by less than optimal artwork/​PDF quality.
For us, it’s well worth investing the effort to develop a good relationship with Kolossos and it’s paid off well.

Terrible. They messed up a 40 dollar order a few weeks ago, not taking the time/​attention to fit the image to the page. They eventually got it right, after I walked back to complain …10 minutes before I was set to present. Since they are right downtown, I thought I would try them again to print a small job (labels) I needed. I set up the document for 30 labels, sent the job electronically in the morning and checked in around 3:30 that it would be ready for 5 pm. Only when I called did they check that they even HAD the paper. They didn’t have a common Avery label. They offered to set up the project for the label paper they had… for an extra $ 7.60.
What a joke. I try to shop local, but this is why independents close.

I emailed Kolossos about getting a quote for some programs I wanted to get printed for an event several weeks in advance. I had the pdf all ready and uploaded. They told me a representative would get back to me in the next few days. They never responded to my inquiry. I tried to support local printers in Ann Arbor for my printing needs but if they can’t even give me a simple quote, how am I supposed to depend on them to print a high volume of programs?
I HIGHLY recommend you avoid Kolossos and instead consider other printing companies who operate without a brick and mortar store. There are certain companies that can give you an exact quote instantly without your final pdf, proof within 12 hours, and have the final programs mailed to you within a week of making your order.

I think in the future, I will look around for binding services instead of simply going to a place because it is «local». I went in with the assumption that I’d be treated a little better than somewhere like Kinkos; I had high hopes.
When I went to drop the project off, I was in awe of the prices. Of course, this was my first time getting binding done and I knew that even if the prices were higher than Kinkos, ok, at least my money was going somewhere local.
I dropped off my project on a Friday. I was told that I would get my finished product on Monday at 5:30pm. They are open on Saturday so that left them 2 whole days to get the thing done. It was printing and spiral-​binding 3 books.
I went in a little after 5:30 on Monday. The man at the desk told me he’d be with me in just a moment. I sat down and waited. The next thing I knew, after finishing up with a customer, he told his co-​worker that he was «heading out for the night.» The guy at the counter started helping people who’d come in after me. Finally when he had a second I told him I’d been waiting for the guy who’d just left. I told him I was there to pick up and he told me that he was behind and hadn’t started my order yet. What??? He told me to come back at 6 and they’d be done. For someone in a hurry, working on a school project, this was really frustrating. He said «if I have to, I’ll stay late to finish them» with a complaining-​undertone who would have been obvious to anyone. They seemed busy, but hey, don’t tell your customers that their project will be done at a time that isn’t possible. Regardless, if it was going to be done late, the least I would have expected was a notification phone call to let me know.
But nothing. So I went back at 6:05 or so even though they were technically closed and he was still in the process of binding them…
They did the wrong binding.
However I wasn’t as disappointed in the binding as I was in the inherent lack of attention to detail and aloofness that they displayed through this whole experience. The binding that they ended up doing was one they had given me a quote on, but ended up being too expensive. I told the man it wasn’t a big deal, because I needed this for a school project that was due the next day, but he should just give me the same price as what I was going to pay for the spiral bound. The man told me they were the same price. When in reality it was about $ 15 more for the binding he gave me. I have a feeling prices «shift around» a lot here, in order to meet whatever the customer looks like they will buy.
In the end, I got the books fine. But the margins were messed up because they’d failed to proof my PDF file first. And when I got home I noticed the cutting on one of the back covers was all choppy. For my school project it was fine but totally not worth the $ I spent, and the ridiculous customer service. They didn’t even offer any discounts for my books being past the pick-​up time.
Never going back here. Surprising they are still afloat with the way they seem to run their business.

I’ve only ever gotten one thing printed there. It was an out-​of-​the-​ordinary project for them, and they were very accommodating and the final product turned out great. Aside from that, Kolossos is near my work so I go there often to get snacks. The staff there is so nice, and they’ve got the best peppermint patty deal in town.

I have used Kolossos several times over the past year for a variety of projects, including posters, prints of photographs, and other prints. They’re always very willing to discuss the needs of my project and what paper type, size, etc. would be best for my particular situation. The prints are always top-​quality, and I find them to be of better quality than other places around town (e.g. Staples). It’s also nice to support a good local business, even if it is a little more expensive than corporate print shops. You get what you pay for, and I’d rather get a really high-​quality print and attentive customer service even if it means paying one or two dollars extra.

Kolossos stands out for their helpful, service-​oriented staff who is always willing to take on a last-​minute job. Every order I’ve done with them has been competitively priced and professionally (and quickly) delivered.
This is the type of local business I am *happy* to support.
Recommended without reservation.

If you require printing services of any significant size, I do not recommend Kolossos. My research team decided to give our business to this smaller, local company, which we ended up regretting.
We needed several thousand surveys and other materials printed, which we began discussing with Kolossos well in advance of our print date. When we first approached them, they kept referring us to different staff and locations, giving us a run-​around. During these referrals across the company, they changed their quotes and increased costs several times, without explanation. We ended up securing the original, lower prices, because they couldn’t justify the sudden price increases when we inquired about them.
We also used their design services (e.g., graphic art in and professional layout of our surveys), which were bad. The person in charge of graphic design returned our first proof with dozens of inexcusable mistakes. We had to review three proofs with him before the product met our original request. We spent over a dozen hours correcting his mistakes in the proofs, as well as driving to his location to explain the mistakes to him in person (he didn’t respond to our emails on several occasions).
Overall, we wish we had used a more reputable company for our ~$ 4000 job. We assumed that even if Kolossos wasn’t as high-​tech as other companies, they would at least have lower prices and quality customer service. We were wrong! We ended up being disappointed with many aspects of both their service and products.

As long as you realize that Kolossos makes their money because they are convenient, not because they have the best prices, they are awesome. I am pretty sure it’s a father /​son thing from the vibe I’ve gotten while there, and they joke around with each other a lot which makes an awesome atmosphere (not in the non-​professional, this is awkward way).
I have only been to the one in the Pin Ball Pete’s Mall, and they were really helpful when I was starting my business and had a million faxes and mailings to send out.
Keep up the great work!

Staff is very good at helping you figure out the cheapest and quickest way to get your print job done.
I’ve used the store to have fliers made and to just send out faxes. They also sell a limited amount of office supplies.
They can make poster-​sized reproductions of photos.