A recent order for business cards for new employees got me thinking about how much Anderson Lock has changed since Gene Anderson opened his “Anderson Lock Shop” in a corner of Andy’s Hardware Store. Within months, the thriving lock and key business was moved to the front of the store, and then, to a separate location, at 1664 Oakton Street, in Des Plaines.
The company then became known as “Anderson Locksmiths.”
The business cards shown here came later, after a move to 1539 Oakton Street, still in Des Plaines. During the years between 1967 and 1984, the company name changed again, first to “Anderson Security Center” then to “Anderson Lock Company, Ltd.”
In 1984 the company expanded again, and moved down the street into a building, at 1801 Oakton, that had formerly housed the Des Plaines Post Office. Before long, the company expanded again to its current location, at 850 E. Oakton Street.
Anderson Lock’s Big Red Delivery Truck
Company colors changed from the yellow and blue of the Swedish flag to the familiar red of its growing fleet of service and delivery trucks, which bear the current, shortened version of the company name, “Anderson Lock.”