TORONTO—C.J. Graphics Printers and Lithographers president Jay Mandarino has been named Printer of the Year by Graphic Monthly Canada, PrintCAN's printed sister mag.

Mandarino, who recently received a Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal from MPP Laurel Broten for his community work, tells GMC about his struggles to overcome learning disabilities, and how he launched C.J. Graphics more than 40 years ago as a business-card side venture while in high school.



From Mandarino's parents' basement to its current headquarters in Toronto's west end with secondary 40,000 sq. ft. location, C.J.'s story is a stop and go tale. Mandarino was bed-ridden by a bad skiing accident in 1983. C.J.'s facility was expropriated in 1990. Partner and senior vice president George Hurley passed away in 2011 after a battle with cancer.

The Printer of the Year Award was created to celebrate printers who exemplify the best in the industry. The award is chosen by the publishers and editors of Graphic Monthly Canada.

Previous winners include Warren Werbitt of Pazazz Printing, George Kallas of Metropolitan Fine Printers, and Mary Black, now of Mary Black Recruiting.