Not long ago, I received a phone call I was not expecting.

It was Chris Epstein, the founder and original owner of CAD Supplies. He was calling to let me know personally that the company he previously sold was closing. In an industry where most competitive relationships stay cold and transactional until the bitter end, that call meant something. It still does.

Chris and I spent the better part of two decades on opposite sides of nearly every major account conversation in Central Texas. We were serious competitors, bitter rivals. But somewhere along the way, over lunches, over shared frustrations about the direction of the market, over the kind of honest conversations that only happen when two people stop performing for each other, we became peers. His phone call, when CSS closed, was entirely in keeping with our relationship.

A Genuine Legacy Worth Acknowledging

CAD Supplies Specialty (CSS) was a Texas-based large-format printing supplier founded in 1998 by Chris Epstein. For more than two decades, it was one of the premier large-format resources in Central Texas. It grew from a grassroots paper supply into equipment sales, service, color profiles, and a wide range of technical support. Chris built that from nothing, and he sustained it through the kind of market shifts that ended many other companies before CSS.

I want to be honest about what our relationship looked like in the early years, because the contrast with where we ended up says something important. For a long stretch, Chris and I were competitors in the truest sense. We crossed paths on accounts across Central Texas constantly, and I used to joke, half-seriously, that he was the Joker to my Batman. I was on the street doing direct sales; he was leading the charge for his company. He was genuinely formidable. Competing against someone like that makes you sharper, and I owe him some credit for that, whether I acknowledged it at the time or not.

What shifted over time, as it sometimes does when professionals grow alongside their businesses, was that the competition gradually gave way to something I value a great deal more: mutual respect. We started grabbing lunch occasionally. We talked about the industry, about where things were heading, about the challenges each of us was working through. That kind of relationship is genuinely rare in the large-format dealer space. That is because most of those dynamics stay guarded and adversarial until someone exits. Ours didn't. I'm grateful it didn't.

When the time came for Chris to exit and sell the company, I think he hoped what he had built would carry forward under new ownership. It did not work out that way. The market had changed. Operations were different. Whatever the full picture looked like from the inside, the outcome was a closure, and with it, the end of something that had genuinely served this community well for a long time. I am sad about that. Not as a competitor calculating an opportunity, but as someone who watched a peer give the better part of his professional life to this industry and to the clients who trusted him.

To Chris: what you built mattered. The relationships you earned over those years were real, and your former clients are reaching out to you now because of the trust you created, not the company name on the invoice. That does not disappear when a business closes. It follows the person.

And to the new ownership, wherever you find this: I genuinely wish you well. Running a business is hard. Taking over one in a market that has shifted is harder. I hope your next chapter is a good one.

Next Steps for CAD Supplies Specialty Clients

If you had an active service agreement or an open supply account with CSS, that coverage is now gone. There is no one holding down the other end of those commitments. If you are reading this because your plotter is down and your usual contact is not picking up, that is not a technical problem;  it is a vendor gap, and it needs a real replacement, not a workaround.

Factory-Certified Service on the Equipment You Already Own

TAVCO holds factory credentials for the full HP DesignJet series, including the XL3600 and the new XL3800. On the Canon side, we are certified across the TM series, TX series, GP Pro series (including the GP4600S), and the Pro 11-color printer line, including the 2600, 4600, and 6600 models. We service equipment regardless of where it was originally purchased. If you bought it from CSS, we can work on it, provided it is still supported. 

The Most Complete Online Supply Store of Any Texas Large-Format Dealer

tavcotech.com operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. HP and Canon ink cartridges, bond paper rolls in 24-, 30-, 36-, and 44-inch widths, specialty media — all ship directly with detailed order tracking on every purchase. No account is required for one-time orders. For firms with recurring supply needs, a supply account adds volume pricing and automatic reorder reminders. The goal is that you never find yourself in a supply emergency again because a vendor relationship changed without warning.

A Real Local Company That Still Does One-to-One

You can call TAVCO and reach someone who knows this equipment, not a call center, not a chatbot, not a ticket system. If your plotter is down, you will talk to someone who can help diagnose it. If you are not sure whether aging hardware is worth continued service, you will get a straight answer. If you just want to understand your options before making any decisions, that conversation is available without any pressure. We serve traditional AEC firms, trades organizations, educational institutions, and government entities, including municipalities and state agencies across Texas.

Frequently Asked Questions: CAD Supplies Specialty Closure

The questions below reflect what former CSS clients most often ask. They are answered here as completely and honestly as we can, because the goal is to help you make a good decision, not just a fast one.

Q: What happened to CAD Supplies Specialty?
A: CAD Supplies Specialty (CSS) was a Texas-based large-format printing and equipment supplier founded in 1998 by Chris Epstein. After more than two decades serving the Central Texas AEC market, Chris sold the company. The new ownership closed operations in early 2026. The company is not relocating, restructuring, or resuming service in any capacity. Phones go unanswered, and emails receive no reply. Former clients with active service contracts or open supply accounts no longer have support through CSS.

Q: Who did Chris Epstein recommend for former CSS clients?
A: Chris Epstein has personally referred former CAD Supplies clients to TAVCO. When former CSS clients reach out to Chris asking where to go for service, supplies, or equipment support, he points them to TAVCO. That recommendation reflects the mutual respect and professional relationship that developed between Chris and TAVCO's  Kevin Vaughan over more than two decades in the Texas large-format market.

Q: Can TAVCO service equipment I originally purchased from CAD Supplies?
A: Yes. TAVCO services HP DesignJet and Canon imagePROGRAF equipment regardless of where it was originally purchased. There is no transfer fee, no registration requirement, and no penalty for switching service providers. The only condition is that the equipment model must still be within the manufacturer's supported service window. If you are unsure whether your machine qualifies, call us and we will tell you honestly, including whether an upgrade makes more financial sense than continued service on aging hardware.

Q: Which HP DesignJet models does TAVCO service?
A: TAVCO holds factory certification for the full HP DesignJet product line, including the T series, the Z series, the XL Light Production series (XL3600 and XL3800), and the HP DesignJet line. Our technicians are factory-trained and stocked with OEM parts for currently supported HP models across the Texas market.

Q: Which Canon imagePROGRAF models does TAVCO service?
A: TAVCO is factory-certified for Canon imagePROGRAF equipment across the full product range, including the TM series (TM-200, TM-300, TM-350), the TX series (TX-2000, TX-3000, TX-4000), the GP Pro series (including the GP4600S), and the Pro 11-color series, including the Pro-2600, Pro-4600, and Pro-6600. We service Canon equipment regardless of the original purchase source.

Q: How quickly can TAVCO respond to a service call in the Austin area?
A: For remote diagnostics, TAVCO typically initiates contact within one business hour of a service request submitted by phone or email. For onsite service in the Austin metro and surrounding areas, response time depends on the service tier and the nature of the issue. Premier tier clients receive emergency priority response. For all service inquiries, call (866) 254-8590 or email service@tavco.net.

Q: Where can I order HP and Canon plotter supplies now that CAD Supplies is closed?
A: tavcotech.com carries a full catalog of HP DesignJet and Canon imagePROGRAF supplies available for immediate purchase 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This includes OEM ink cartridges for all current HP and Canon large-format models, bond paper rolls in 24-inch, 30-inch, 36-inch, and 44-inch widths in 20lb and 24lb weights, matte and glossy specialty media, and photographic paper. No account is required for one-time purchases. Firms with recurring supply needs can set up a supply account for volume pricing and automatic reorder reminders.

Q: Does TAVCO only serve Austin, or does it cover the broader Texas market?
A: TAVCO serves the full Texas large-format market. Field service technicians and supply delivery cover Austin, Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Waco, Corpus Christi, and surrounding areas. The tavcotech.com e-commerce platform ships supplies statewide and nationwide. TAVCO has been serving Texas AEC professionals since 1984 and operates as a statewide resource rather than a single-city dealer.

Q: Who does TAVCO typically serve beyond AEC firms?
A: TAVCO's client base spans traditional AEC firms: architects, engineers, and construction professionals, as well as trades organizations that need large-format output for schematics, floor plans, and site drawings. TAVCO also serves educational institutions, including universities and school districts, government entities, including municipalities, county offices, and state agencies, and marketing and reprographics firms that require large-format print capabilities. If your organization produces or manages large-format printed documents in Texas, TAVCO is equipped to support you.

Q: What is HP AI Vectorize, and does TAVCO support it?
A: HP AI Vectorize is a tool that converts scanned legacy drawings, including hand-drawn plans, older blueprints, and low-resolution PDFs, into editable CAD vector files. For AEC firms with large archives of paper drawings, it significantly reduces the time required to bring legacy documentation into a current digital workflow. TAVCO is one of the few large-format dealers in Texas actively implementing HP AI Vectorize. More information is available at tavcotech.com/pages/pdf-to-cad-conversion.

Q: My CSS service contract was paid in advance. What are my options?
A: If you prepaid for a CSS service contract that is now without support, your recourse depends on how the payment was made and whether a formal agreement exists. TAVCO cannot recover funds paid to CSS, but we can help you establish new coverage quickly and work with you on pricing that accounts for the disruption you have experienced. Contact us directly at (866) 254-8590 to discuss your specific situation.

Q: Is TAVCO a legitimate long-term option, or is this just opportunistic outreach?
A: TAVCO has been in continuous operation since 1984, more than 40 years, serving the Texas AEC market. The company is not a pop-up responding to a competitor's closure. 

Q: How do I get started with TAVCO?
A: For service on existing equipment, call (866) 254-8590 or email service@tavco.net. For supplies, visit tavcotech.com. No account required for a first purchase. To speak with someone about your full situation, including service tiers, equipment assessments, or supply account setup, reach out through the contact form at tavco.net/pages/contact. The TAVCO team is available for direct conversations with former CSS clients who want honest guidance before making any commitments.