Mast Store expands business family with addition of locally owned partner, M-Prints

Mast General Store announces its purchase of a long-time vendor located in Boone, North Carolina. The Mast Store recently acquired M-Prints, an apparel graphics printer and embroiderer, whose founder and owner, Stuart Mangum, put the business on the market in preparation for the next chapter of his life.

Stuart Mangum, former owner of M-Prints (left), hands “the keys” to Lisa Cooper, president of Mast General Store, and David Still, the new manager of M-Prints under Mast Store ownership.

As family-owned businesses, Mast Store and M-Prints have partnered together for nearly four decades. M-Prints has printed over 300,000 t-shirts and sweatshirts for the Mast Store over the course of the businesses’ enduring relationship.

“We are excited to welcome M-Prints to our business family,” said Mast Store President Lisa Cooper.

Also, like Mast Store, M-Prints values community-based organizations dedicated to improving lives and landscapes in its home region. The businesses share a history of mutual support for local nonprofit organizations like Blue Ridge Conservancy, OASIS, and Western Youth Network.

Cooper expressed her esteem for Mangum and looks to carry on his business’s highly regarded reputation of championing community causes through its new place in the Mast Store family.

“I have admired Stuart since I met him,” said Cooper. “His humble personality is endearing, and his work ethic is impressive and obvious. Stuart and his business embody so many of Mast Store’s long-held beliefs about giving back and community involvement.”

Mangum himself welcomes M-Print’s new era with the knowledge that the core of its legacy will persist.

“I couldn’t be happier that the Mast Store family will be continuing the M-Prints tradition of supporting the organizations that make our area the special place it is. I feel that a business that thrives only with local support has a responsibility to give back to the community. Knowing that the business I have spent 34 years developing and growing will now be in the hands of a family and a business I have tremendous respect for is quite satisfying,” said Mangum.

For Cooper, who serves on the board of Blue Ridge Conservancy, maintaining her family- and employee-owned company’s legacy of backing community-focused organizations that promote conservation, human needs, and the arts is a foundational business principle.

“Community groups are the heartbeat of our home. Their work ensures that the places we live are healthy, safe, and vibrant for all people,” said Cooper.

She elaborated, “Stuart certainly understood this. His longevity as a businessperson in the High Country is a testament to his character and a model for how all business owners should advocate on behalf of residents and groups that tirelessly serve local interests.”

Furthering the continuity of their community-minded business practices and philosophies, Mast Store will retain M-Prints’ employees and will be working with Mangum over the next several weeks to complete the business transition and move of its equipment and inventory.

David Still, who has previously worked with locally based Ray’s Weather, has been hired to manage the business and assist with the transition as Mangum steps aside.

The addition of M-Prints also positions Mast Store to expand its current capabilities and offerings. With 11 Mast Store locations and a sister store, Rivercross Made in USA, in its family of stores, the 141-year-old, Valle Crucis-based company’s first-ever, “in-house” graphics printer and embroiderer opens the door to many possibilities for the future of its business.

Presently, M-Prints has paused order fulfillments as it packs up to move into its new location. It will soon return to serve customers from its new home in Glendale Springs in neighboring Ashe County. Logistical accommodations for existing customer pick-ups and drop-offs are in the works and details will be released soon.