During the summers of 1954 and 1955, when school was out, Mrs. Mitchell did the bookwork at home. Kent and childhood friend Charlie Grim went to the 1301 S. Carey Street office from 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m. to take care of customers. There was one salesman then, John Rowe. We shared our office with “Better Packages”, a distributor of tape machines. We sold the Duo-Fast line of equipment and staples, fine wire / hammer tackers, squeeze tackers and small air tackers, and also represented the international line of carton closing equipment, Neva-Clog and Bates Manual Staplers. The customer base then consisted of upholstery shops, rail car lining (with paper), furniture manufacturing, wooden parts bin tagging, carton closing, insulators, the bedding industry, luggage, and millwork companies.

In 1956, Charlie was hired full time, and a second salesman was also hired. From 1956 to 1960 we saw the arrival of the “Gray Line” of air tools – B-60 brad nailer / S-762 and S-763 16 gauge 7/16" staplers and S-170 1" crown staplers. These tools opened markets for crating, cabinet shops, some segments of construction and other wood related assembly applications.

In June of 1961 there was a scare about our survival because of a fire which destroyed 6 out of 8 buildings at the
Duo-Fast Manufacturing Plant in Illinois. The tenacity of both the Duo-Fast Corp. personnel and the Mitchells’ overcame this event and everyone survived.

During the decade of the ‘60s, framing nailers, coil nailers, and electric staplers were added to the product mix. These tools opened huge markets for pallets, shipping containers, mobile homes, travel trailers, carpeting and all facets of home construction. Sales of these new products fueled the expansion of Duo-Fast Maryland, and necessitated the hiring of more sales and support people as we added Washington, D.C. and Northern
Virginia to our territory.

Duo-Fast Maryland made steady growth and progress with the new markets opening for wood fabrication. This
growth required the move from the original warehouse on Carey Street to Whitehead Road in Baltimore County.
During the ‘70s, more employees and outside warehouses were added to sustain growth even though the national economy was experiencing a major downturn. Duo-Fast products were still the primary fuel for the engine but some auxiliary products were starting to be added. Some of these items were 3M adhesives, cleaners, abrasives, and steel strapping and tapes. The addition of the state of Virginia to the territory required another move to larger quarters, in the new area of Columbia between Baltimore and Washington, D.C.

In Central Maryland, the manufacturing base was starting to decline with industry moving elsewhere, so the construction industry started to play a larger role in our growth. In the ‘80s, our growth was fueled by opening more locations to service larger additions to the customer base. The addition of Pennsylvania locations added to growth and areas covered. This decade was also the end of proprietary product lines as more players moved into the industry, and Duo-Fast made the decision to end the exclusive agreements that dealers like us had enjoyed.

To adjust to the industry change, Mid- Atlantic Fasteners, as we are now called, started to represent the once competitive lines of product such as Senco, Hitachi and other brands. Growth was achieved in the ‘90s by opening more locations from the Carolinas to Pennsylvania. Product lines were added to compliment existing products resulting in a more complete item list for our customers.

“The company’s survival has been due to the values and integrity instilled by Frank and Catherine Mitchell from the beginning,” Charlie Grim, who still works in Customer Service 50 years later, notes. “Throughout our history management has been able to react to changing market conditions. The family has also been able to attract and retain reliable employees who, with leadership from this management, moved the company forward.”