Our Story

The MooreCo Story

A Commitment to Lifelong Learning That Allows Everyone to Thrive, Flourish, and Grow

It all started with Lorraine…

Like many great company founders, Lorraine Moore encountered a problem and devised a solution. Working in educational furniture sales in a small Texas town in the early 1980s, Lorraine became frustrated by the lack of furniture options for an emerging new industry: printers. She responded by designing and developing the world’s first printer stand on casters, and her company, Balt, was born.

Balt soon became the nation’s leader in design and production of printer stands for major printer manufacturers. Driven by a desire to design products that filled a need for her customers, Lorraine continued to innovate, striving to introduce up to ten new designs each year.

As the company grew, Balt became known as a respected source for innovative and dependable products that supported the computer, office furniture, and educational furnishings industries.

…who passed down a passion for innovation…

Lorraine was passionate about her mission, and her son Greg followed in her footsteps from the beginning—first as a child model in the company’s catalogs, and later working on the factory floor learning every detail of the design and manufacturing process.

Like many of his generation, Greg was schooled in a traditional model that emphasized structure, memorization, and discipline, and frowned upon creativity and self-expression. It stifled Greg’s learning, leading to struggles and frustration, and only as an adult would he would be diagnosed with ADD. The diagnosis was a relief, as it allowed him the realization that his difficulties in school and with learning were systemic, and not individual to him.

Later, as the CEO of the company (rebranded MooreCo in 2007), it became Greg’s passion to introduce solutions that promote inclusiveness and help all learners flourish. Under Greg’s leadership, MooreCo ushered in a new generation of innovative products that enabled everyone to thrive, no matter their learning style.

…that led to an enduring vision:
creating space for everyone to thrive.

Much has changed in the past four decades, but not our passion for designing and developing innovative solutions where children and adults feel inspired. As research continues to reveal the impact environments have on learning, we’re committed to the development of collaborative products that allow everyone to thrive, flourish, and grow.

More than 30 years ago, Lorraine Moore made a commitment to do business differently by turning insights into innovations and reimagining the spaces where we learn and work. And today, that is still the vision and message that drives us to do what we do.

A History of MooreCo

1985

The Founding of Balt

In the small town of Cameron, Texas, Lorraine Moore creates the first ever printer stand on casters, thus founding Balt, Inc. Shortly after, she expands the company into computer furniture for offices and classrooms.

1991

Best-Rite Joins the Family

Balt has grown large enough to purchase Best-Rite Chalkboard, which originated in the 1950s as a division of American Desk. Balt and Best-Rite now work together to supply visual communication products as well as furniture.

1994

Growing with Trinity Furniture

The Moore family acquires Trinity Church Furniture and establishes BBT as a family of brands: Balt, Best-Rite, and Trinity.

1995

Greg Moore Comes on Board

Greg Moore joins his mother Lorraine in the executive leadership of BBT, positioning the company as a leader in manufacturing and distribution with the nation’s top dealers and wholesalers.

2000

Moving on Up

Best-Rite inaugurates a brand new state of the art manufacturing facility in Temple, Texas and moves out of Cameron. The original building is converted to warehouse storage for additional products.

2002

Dedicated to Making a Difference

Greg Moore is named President of BBT, and the Trinity division is sold off. An addition is made to the new manufacturing facility in order to accommodate the rapid growth of the company, including new rooms for product quality testing and development.

2007

The Next Generation of Leadership

Lorraine Moore retires from the business. Webster Capital, a private equity firm from Boston, becomes the new owner, leaving Greg Moore as CEO, who establishes the company as MooreCo, Inc.

2011

Expanding to Austin, Texas

MooreCo opens its first showroom in Austin, Texas, relocating the sales and marketing divisions for better accessibility and growth potential.

2017

Moore Family at the Helm Again

MooreCo returns to the Moore family. CEO Greg Moore and his wife Polly Moore, VP of Marketing, partner with Prudential Capital group, the private placement financial giant, and together they become the new owners.

2018

Contract Division Established

MooreCo launches a contract division, now offering a full suite of services including interior design, project management, and professional installation. MooreCo becomes a multi-service company with products ranging from high end built-to-order, to standard products with the fastest lead times in the industry. Value conscious products continue to be offered under the Essentials by MooreCo brand.

2019

Thrive by MooreCo

Thrive by MooreCo is introduced as a research and development brand. The Thrive philosophy was created to show how the conscious design of environments can impact performance and mood. Based on six key facets of human development, Thrive is supported and built upon with collaboration from experts in the fields of neuroscience, psychology, social-emotional development, ethics, and ergonomics to develop furnishings and tools that create balanced environments with individual needs in mind.

2023

Acquisition of CJ Designs

MooreCo acquires CJ Designs in Morristown, TN. It becomes the center of our soft seating operations and allows our Thrive Philosophy to be implemented across all product solutions more holistically.

It’s Personal.

Make it personal. It’s one of our core values. From every design to each interaction, it should always feel like your specific needs are being met.

We strive to make MooreCo personal because for us, it is personal. As a family business, our purpose, values, and vision are intimately tied to and guided by our story.

Our Company Values:

  • Have Fun At Work

    We follow the mantra that if you can’t enjoy what you’re doing, then you’re doing the wrong thing. Our third generation employees are a testament to this core value.

  • Extreme Customer Care

    Whether you need a single product or are outfitting an entire facility, we ensure everyone who reaches out feels unique and important, and that you know we value you.

  • Make It Personal

    Whatever your needs, we make sure our customers know we’ll go above and beyond to make it happen. If a solution doesn’t exist, don’t worry! We’ll create one.

  • Vision & Innovation

    Learning is a lifelong journey. As human behavior continues to evolve, we adapt to those changes with innovative solutions to support you every step of the way.