In 1949 Harry Truman was president, America had 48 states and gas cost 27 cents a gallon.
In eastern Los Angeles county, a businessman named Al Nelson formed Apex Painting with a
half dozen trucks and a crew of six. For a quarter century, Apex, made its name painting the
independent gas stations of southern California. Many of Apex's first Clients - Black Gold,
Flying A, Rio Grande, Seaside - have been extinct for a generation.
Randy and Kathleen Hargrave bought Apex in 1984. The following year, their son Hal was hired on and the company
moved to its current site in Pomona, CA. In the late 1980's, Apex expanded its scope of work
to include lead abatement and water reservoir work. As a former Mobil distributor, Hargrave's
oil industry connections (basketball games between Mobil engineers were a common sight on the
Pomona lot of years) established Apex as a reputable contractor for large scale industrial
re-imaging projects.
Renamed Apex Imaging Services in 2000, the company has expanded into a full-service,
national imaging contractor with offices in five states. With 100 vehicles and 150 employees,
Apex Imaging Services specializes in image, rollout and sign programs, ACM, graphics and vinyl
installation, order and inventory control, and warehousing and distribution. Katie Hargrave continues as President, and along with General Manager Hal Hargrave, Apex Imaging Services continues to expand the scope of its services with computer color enhancement and satellite imaging services. Having provided outstanding service
in forty states, Apex looks forward to the 21st century with an eye to its long history as guide.
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