Winston Horton Owner of C and H Printing Florida Community College, Class of 1989 A.A. Degree

The Rewards of Taking a Risk

Winston Horton
Owner of C and H Printing
Florida Community College, Class of 1989
Associate in Arts Degree

It’s been said that in order to succeed in business, you have to be willing to take risks. Winston Horton takes that message to heart. The self-described “adrenaline junkie” is an avid surfer, world traveler and skydiver. Risky stuff, but he’s taken even bigger — like leaving a successful, well-paying job to start a new business.

Horton’s family, like most Navy families, bounced around quite a bit before settling in Jacksonville. While his father was only stationed there for a short time, it was in Puerto Rico where he grew an appreciation for outdoor activities and out-of-the-way locales.

His family eventually settled in nearby Orange Park, which made Florida Community College a convenient choice. “I really enjoyed the laid-back atmosphere,” he says. Flexibility and affordability were equally important, as Horton put himself through college, working as a bartender.

He graduated in 1989 from FCCJ with his associate in arts degree. It was Horton’s plan to transfer to Embry-Riddle, earn a degree in aeronautical engineering and go on to become a jet pilot for the military, a career he thought suitably exciting. But first Horton had to complete the Naval Aviation Cadet (NAVCAD) program. If successfully completed, it was an entry to flight school. He easily passed — until it came to the eye exam. Horton could have still gone to flight school, but his poor eye sight prohibited flying jets. And if he couldn’t fly a jet, he wasn’t going.

So Horton chose a new career path. In preparing for flight school, Horton had taken plenty of math and science and found that he liked working with numbers. A career in finance would allow him to find a well-paying job doing something he enjoyed. Horton transferred to the University of North Florida to pursue a finance degree.

Thanks to FCCJ, “I was fully prepared to hit the ground running when I went to UNF’s School of Business,” Horton says. He graduated with his bachelor’s in 1992 and was almost immediately hired by Merrill Lynch, working in mutual funds. He soon moved to Barnett Bank where he rapidly worked his way from an equities trader to becoming a broker.

Two years later, Horton was very successful and happy in his career choice when he received a phone call from Patrick Calder, one of his closest and oldest friends. Calder wanted to start his own printing business, and he wanted Horton as his partner. Another chance at adventure — he was in.

It didn’t worry Horton that he knew absolutely nothing about the printing business. “It’s about commitment to the business, not what the product is,” Horton explains. It wasn’t easy. There were a few years, Horton says, where they were “barely making enough for car payments and mortgages.”

Next June, C and H Printing will celebrate 10 years in business. Running a growing business can be stressful but that growth has also allowed for more sales staff, giving Horton the chance to get back to his favorite part of the job — marketing and development.

Horton’s proud of the progress his business has made. “We’re small, but we run it like a big business,” he says. Even when that means making big decisions that don’t work out. “Failure teaches you — you learn what not to do next time.”

“It’s very fulfilling,” Horton says. He enjoys the opportunity it gives him to make a difference. “As an owner, you’re only as good as the people working for you. If you don’t encourage them to grow, your business doesn’t grow either. It’s great watching people get excited about their jobs.”