The cartridge family
Married couple’s store offers big savings on inkjet cartridge refills
BY KAREN E. BOWES
Staff Writer

Above, Joe and Joy Betesh, owners of Cartridge World in Middletown, ring up a sale for a customer. Top inset, Cartridge World, located on Route 35, refills used ink cartridges at half the price of new cartridges. At left, technician works on a laser ink cartridge before refilling it with ink.

MIDDLETOWN — The Joy (and Joe) of a bargain doesn’t come along everyday.

Unless you live near Route 35.

Husband and wife Joe and JoyBetesh recently opened Cartridge World, a retail outlet that offers ink refill services at half the price of buying ink cartridges new.

“The core part of our business is refilling and recycling ink cartridges,” said Joy Betesh. “We do the small little inkjets and the large laser ones.”

All ink cartridge refills cost 50 percent less than buying a new cartridge.

“I have to actually educate people,” said Joy Betesh, who handles the marketing end of the business. “People have no idea that ink can be refilled.”

Located next to Meineke Muffler in the Colonial Plaza on Route 35 north, Cartridge World is part of an international chain begun in Australia in the late 1980s. The company came stateside in 2003, and has since opened approximately 300 locations nationwide, including those in Freehold, Brick and Oakhurst.

Joe Betesh handles the technical side of things, refilling the cartridges with one of the 100 types of ink he keeps on hand in order to match the original ink perfectly.

“They’re cleaned, tested, filled and then tested again before going out to the consumer,” said Joe Betesh, who completed two weeks of training at the Cartridge World American headquarters in California.

Laser inkjets are much larger than the cartridges and are typically used in most large offices. In order to refill those, he must replace some of the parts.

“He’s always been very handy,” said wife Joy. “He can fix anything. He has magic hands.”

The business also has environmental appeal. A printer cartridge thrown into a landfill can take up to 450 years to decompose, according to materials put out by the company.

PHOTOSBY KAREN BOWES

“They all used to end up in landfills,” said Joe Betesh.

“It’s something you know you’re going to use, you’re not wasting,” said Joy Betesh. “And you’re preserving the earth’s valuable resources at the same time.”

The price of brand-name ink per ounce is currently higher than Chanel No. 5 perfume or vintage Dom Perignon, according to Business Week magazine, which has a feature on the price of ink in their Nov. 14 issue.

“It’s a very precious liquid,” said Joy Betesh. “They call it liquid gold.”

To make ink cartridges, oil is required — a lot of oil. According to Cartridge World statistics, 3.4 liters of oil, about three-fourths of a gallon, is needed to make one new laser cartridge. By recycling old cartridges, the company estimates millions of liters of oil could be saved.

In fact, producing new laser cartridges is so expensive, many manufacturers are asking consumers to mail back empty laser cartridges in order to reuse some of the parts.

“So you could go out and buy a new laser cartridge and pay top dollar and you’re still getting recycled parts,” said Joy Betesh.

Perhaps the best testament to this budding business is the response they’ve already received. On a recent morning, while gathering information for this story, a photographer asked a customer if he would like his picture taken for the newspaper. The customer adamantly responded no.

“I work for the competition,” said the man, who added he was employed by a large computer company that sells brand-name ink cartridges.

For the Beteshes, it was a joyful moment.

Cartridge World, located at 665 Route 35 north, offers a 100 percent guarantee on all their services. They refill color, fax and photocopier cartridges as well as inkjet and laser cartridges.

The store is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, 11-4 p.m. on Sunday and is closed on Saturday. For more information, call the store at (732) 796-0770.