Blackburn Manufacturing’s Legacy: Celebrating 70 Years of Business

Did you know in 1958 the average life-span of a company was 61 years? In 2016, it was less than 18 years, and it has been predicted that by 2027, 75% of major companies will have disappeared…

This year, Blackburn Manufacturing celebrates 70 successful years in business.

Blackburn Manufacturing has been in business since 1953, and we’re proud to say that our company has beaten the odds that were made in 1958 and 2016. We look forward to beating the odds again in 2027. 

This year we celebrate Blackburn’s success, not simply a result of its longevity, but because of the ingenuity, diligence and community support that propels the company forward. Blackburn Manufacturing is only gaining momentum as it strides toward a more successful future as the worldwide leader in marking flags.

 

How Blackburn Manufacturing Began

Blackburn’s inspiring journey started in the basement of a small family homestead near Royal, Nebraska. Blackburn Manufacturing got its name from its founder, E.A. “Bud” Blackburn, who was an engineer by trade. Bud’s legacy in flag making began as a simple request from his cousin who worked in the surveying industry. 

 

Tired of using old lathe stakes as markers, Bud’s cousin came to Bud and asked him if he could attach a piece of cloth or paper to a wire or wooden stick.

From that simple request, Bud engineered an automated flag machine that would glue a vinyl flag to a wire staff in 1953. In his first year in business, Bud, his father Arthur, and his two sons, Jim aged 7 and Bob aged 11, ran the one machine around the clock to fill the company’s first million flag order. 

From there, the rest is history. 

The Exponential Growth of Blackburn

Fast forward 18 years to 1971, and Blackburn Manufacturing had produced 20,800,700 flags, the staff had become more robust and what started as a business in Bud’s basement had expanded to a three-building facility in its current home of Neligh, Nebraska.

Two years later, Bud’s son, Jim Blackburn, now grown up and back from serving in the Navy, joined the company to assist his father with managerial duties. It wasn’t long after that, that Jim and his father faced their first competitive challenge in the marking flag business. 

In 1975, came the introduction of small marking flags printed with custom logos and messages. Blackburn Manufacturing hadn’t yet ventured into printing and quickly needed to address the competition. Jim faced this challenge head on by forming a printing company as a subsidiary of Blackburn Manufacturing. 

Mr. Bill Lawson was charged with running the new branch of Blackburn, and in 1975, the company produced 1,750,000 printed flags.

 

With business increasing exponentially for Blackburn, there came the need to expand. In 1989, a new production plant was built in Cambria, California. Jim’s older brother, Bob Blackburn, took over operations at the new California facility.

In 1994, another Blackburn joined the family business, Jennifer, the oldest daughter of Jim Blackburn. After the addition of Jennifer, Blackburn Manufacturing continued to thrive. The company’s annual production had increased to 190,628,450 flags by 2002. Ten years after she joined the company, Jennifer was promoted to President of Blackburn Manufacturing. 

Under Jennifer’s leadership, the company went global with sales to Europe, South America and the Middle East.

In 2010, it was Jim’s youngest daughter’s turn to make an impact at Blackburn Manufacturing. Krista (Blackburn) Schindler first joined the company as a flag maker, and soon after she advanced to a customer service position. Now, Krista is Blackburn’s Marketing Director, and she oversees all marketing and communications efforts on the company’s behalf. She also plays a key role in the development of new products.

Krista’s efforts have helped Blackburn Manufacturing establish a robust online presence which has elevated sales and greatly enhanced their customers’ shopping experience.

Many challenges face businesses on their rise to bigger, better, greener pastures. It takes steadfast resolve and unwavering support for a business to succeed. Blackburn Manufacturing had both of those things and more.

Undeniably, Bud Blackburn was a hard worker, thinker and tinkerer who could creatively overcome challenges that he faced. Thankfully, it turned out that his family, and the entire Blackburn team, was cut from the same cloth.

 

Blackburn Today…The Worldwide Leader in Marking Flags

 

This year, Blackburn Manufacturing sold its 6 billionth flag, and since 2015, Neligh, Nebraska has been known as the Flag Capital of Nebraska due in large part to the amazing success that Blackburn has achieved in all its years in business. 

Currently, all flag machines are still made in-house according to Bud Blackburn’s original blueprints with only slight modifications made over the years. 

“The same simplistic principle is still there, technology has just enabled us to make things a little easier and faster today,” says CEO Jim Blackurn (Jim took over in 1980). 

 

 

The company currently has 50 employees in Neligh and 5 in Paso Robles, CA and exports flags to Canada, South America, Belgium, Spain, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Puerto Rico, Australia, Italy, Mexico and other countries. 

Would you believe that around 1,000 U.S. companies have survived more than 100 years? At Blackburn Manufacturing, we only have 30 more years to go. With our awesome team, visionary leadership and insanely supportive community, we know making it to a century in business will be a breeze and a whole lot of fun.

 

Watch this video to hear Jim Blackburn, Jennifer Blackburn, Krista Blackburn-Schindler and Kelly Kosek talk about how Blackburn Manufacturing has succeeded for 70 years.