Company History

Murphy Printing, known as Weters Novelty Company in the beginning,  began long before email signatures, online proofs, or overnight shipping. Back in 1921, San Francisco still carried the grit and scars of rebuilding after the great earthquake and fire. Small businesses lined the streets. Neighborhood shops knew their customers by name. Printing was not just ink on paper — it was how companies introduced themselves to the world.

Somewhere in that city, Murphy Printing opened its doors.

In the early years, the shop was built around craftsmanship and reliability. Type was set by hand. Presses thundered through the day. Ink stained aprons, hands, and sometimes entire shirts. Customers walked in needing business forms, invoices, announcements, menus, and letterheads — the everyday tools that kept San Francisco businesses moving.

The city changed constantly around them. Murphy Printing printed through the Roaring Twenties, through the Great Depression when every order mattered, and through World War II when paper shortages and rationing challenged printers across America. Still, the presses kept running.

As San Francisco evolved, so did Murphy Printing.

The shop adapted from letterpress to offset printing. Metal type gave way to film. Film eventually gave way to digital workflows. Every decade brought a prediction that print was dying, yet businesses still needed something tangible. Restaurants needed menus. Non-profits needed fundraising mailers. Companies needed brochures, presentation folders, signs, and trade show displays. Events needed programs and invitations.

Murphy Printing stayed relevant because it stayed personal.

Over the years, the business became known less as “a printer” and more as a trusted local partner. Clients called because they needed guidance, not just production. They wanted someone who answered the phone, caught mistakes before jobs went to press, and cared whether the final product looked exceptional.

Family became part of the story too.

For decades, after original founder Tom Murphy and later, his son  Bob Murphy, Larry Murphy and his brother Ken worked side by side. Larry handled the front end of the business — sales, customer relationships, finance, and management. Ken focused on production and making sure the work leaving the shop met the standards the company had built its reputation on.

Together, they guided Murphy Printing through some of the biggest changes the industry had ever seen.

The rise of online printing companies created intense price pressure. Print buyers became conditioned to instant quotes and faceless ordering systems. Many traditional print shops disappeared. But Murphy Printing leaned into what the internet could not easily replace: experience, responsiveness, accountability, and human relationships.

Customers noticed.

Some came in needing conference materials shipped directly to San Francisco hotels at the last minute. Others needed nonprofit mailings handled carefully and correctly. Event planners needed banners and signs fast. Startups needed polished materials to look credible in front of investors. Longtime clients kept returning because they trusted the people behind the company.

By the 2020s, Murphy Printing had crossed the century mark — over 100 years in business in one of the most competitive and rapidly changing cities in America.

That survival did not happen by accident.

It came from adapting without losing identity. From understanding that print is not just a product; it is communication made physical. It is the brochure someone holds during a pitch meeting. The memorial program saved in a family drawer. The conference signage that welcomes attendees. The postcard that brings in a donation. The business card exchanged during the beginning of a new relationship.

Today, Murphy Printing stands as a rare thing in modern business: a third-generation-era company still built on old-fashioned principles.

Answer the phone.
Treat customers fairly.
Do quality work.
Keep your word.

In a city famous for reinvention, Murphy Printing endured not by chasing every trend, but by remaining useful, dependable, and deeply human.

More than a century after the first jobs rolled off its presses, Murphy Printing continues to help San Francisco businesses tell their stories — one printed piece at a time.