For a company that once prided itself on collegiality, last month's annual meeting of Kinko's at the Inter-Continental Hotel in Dallas was a sobering event. The privately held copying giant provided only soda and water for the 20 or so attendees, several of whom blasted Kinko's largest shareholder, buyout firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice. One unhappy shareholder was conspicuously absent: Paul Orfalea, the soft-spoken, self-deprecating founder of Kinko's, whose curly red hair was the source of the company name. Although he still owns 15% of the company and holds the honorary title of "chairperson emeritus," Orfalea has been persona non grata at Kinko's for the past two years. He needs permission from the company to visit any of Kinko's 1,100 stores.
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