companyhistory
  • Mariak was founded in the San Fernando Valley region of greater Los Angeles by company president, Leo Elinson, and company vice president, Patty Elinson, in 1986, as a window covering retail and light fabrication company, dedicated to the assembly and sale of vertical blinds to the public. From its humble beginnings, the fabrication process began in the garage of a single family residence in Reseda, CA. In order to accommodate modest growth in the next two years, the sales-fabrication facility moved twice to larger industrial warehouse locations. In 1988, the company initiated the distribution of parts and components for vertical blind fabricating to other regional fabricators, in addition to expanding its own fabrication division.
  • By 1990, the success and growth of both the retail and distribution segments of the business necessitated the move to a larger 12,000 square foot facility in the centrally located Harbor City Corridor-Torrance region of Los Angeles, which provided access to all major freeways and the Port of Los Angeles. In 1991, as both the fabrication of vertical blinds for retail customers and the distribution and re-sale of associated componentry increased, Mariak launched its first sample book which included a variety of fabrics and pvc designs. This sample book was a very successful tool that led to an exponential increase in sales in both fabricated vertical blind products and in the distribution/re-sale of associated materials, parts and components.
  • From 1992 to 2006, Mariak continued to grow by fabricating other window covering product lines, including horizontal blinds made of wood and pvc, mini-blinds, roller shades, and cellular shades. In addition, the distribution and re-sale of the associated parts and components for these products continued to expand to other fabricators throughout the western United States. Mariak acquired and purchased five commercial buildings, four of which were dedicated to the fabricating of a specific product line and the fifth for the additional warehousing of inventory. During this time, Mariak established its own dedicated fleet of trucks to provide customers with efficient and timely access to their products, a delivery system that was and to this day remains unique to the window coverings industry.
  • In 2007, Mariak sold all of its buildings and consolidated all production and administrative-sales support personnel to a single 95,000 square foot location in Rancho Dominguez, California in order to accommodate continued expansion and to facilitate both production and shipping-delivery efficiency. This location provided improved access to the port and major freeway junctions. At this time, the business focused primarily on fabricating, with a corresponding reduction of its distribution and re-sale of materials and componentry. Production sales focused on small retail businesses whose customer base was single family homes, larger “showroom” retailers and dealers who serviced large-scale construction projects, and finally, commercial, contract sales, including the hospitality industry, through architectural firms. Window covering fabricating projects included major government and military facilities, hotels, commercial office buildings, healthcare facilities and hospitals, public schools, and private and public colleges and universities. Mariak’s delivery system expanded to include a fleet of trucks, including three tractor trailers and five bobtails.
  • In 2008, many domestic suppliers of the raw materials used in the fabricating of window coverings closed their businesses as a result of the U.S. financial crash and subsequent economic decline. Consequently, production materials used in domestic fabricating had to be outsourced to the international market, creating a much more global economy. This set of circumstances mandated that US fabricating companies invest a substantial amount of capital, maintain large inventory quantities, and acclimatize to much longer lead times for the overseas acquisition of goods. Mariak was and continues to thrive in the climate of this increasingly global economy due to its maintenance of expansive inventories, a highly efficient production capacity, and a very unique delivery system with its own fleet of in-house commercial trucks. All of these factors have enabled a quick turn-a-round of high quality product for customers.
  • In the first decade of the Twenty-first Century, the internet created a rapidly escalating new customer base for the window covering industry, and Mariak has jumped to the challenge. By 2012, our reputation as a major supplier for a variety of window coverings products has reached beyond the continental United States. Mariak’s formula for success continues to be: impressive product inventories, efficient production, a streamlined delivery system beyond our in-house transportation fleet, extraordinary customer service, and purchasing proficiency to sustain reasonable costs for our customers, in spite of increases in various energy sources, such as gas and oil, transportation costs, and raw materials abroad.
  • Today, Mariak is one of the few remaining independently owned companies in the window covering industry. We have two facilities totaling 220,000 square feet dedicated to our production, administrative-sales and shipping functions. Each of our product categories are clearly divided and organized to streamline production efficiency; as each product line continues to grow organically, we are currently able to move product from order entry through production to shipment within two days. In the last three years, we have lowered production costs, increased efficiency and productivity, acquired cutting-edge equipment and machinery for better technical performance and quality, expanded our market base, and improved and expanded our customer service support network. We currently employ a work force of 420 people who all work as a team dedicated to service our customers.
  • The Fall of 2013 marks the inauguration of Mariak’s Large Format Digital Printing Program, the heart of our newest division which provides groundbreaking and innovative decorative significance for not only window coverings but a variety of other interior design applications as well. Our latest department offers our customers services in both “Roller Shade Printing” and “Textile Printing”. We are able to provide small to medium runs of printed fabric with widths up to 126” plus and no yardage minimums, unlike the majority of printing companies which require minimum orders of 5,000-10,000 yards. Our state-of-the-art program allows us to supply our customers with unsurpassed quality, exceptional lead time for delivery, and the most competitive pricing. Please see “Printing” Section in our product line pages
  • Leo and Patty Elinson, founders and owners of Mariak industries, Inc. since 1986 are proud to announce the birth of Patrician Window Coverings, a new member of the Mariak family of companies under the leadership of Leo and Patty Elinson. Patrician has acquired Woodland Blinds effective August 29, 2014. Patrician is a new Houston-based corporation organized and operated in accordance with Texas laws. Patrician is located in the same 80,000 square foot facility as its predecessor, Woodland Blinds with 80 employees.

    As a member of the Mariak family of companies, Patrician pledges to provide our customers with products of the highest quality craftsmanship, exceptional delivery times, outstanding customer service and technical assistance, substantial inventory levels, and competitive pricing.

  • Future Projects: Mariak prides itself in being a major fabricater in both residential and commercial window coverings for nearly three decades, and as such, we remain dedicated to the continual improvement, design, and implementation of our current line of long-established window treatment specialty products. As we continue to grow organically, our research and development, engineering, and design staff are excited to be in the process of offering an expanded line of innovative, complementary merchandise for our valued interior design customers including:
  1. Commercial & Residential Wallpaper
  2. Repositional Wallpaper
  3. Shade Clings
  4. Window Clings
  5. UL Listed Flooring Material
  6. Advertising Materials