Large Format Review - Business News

Avery Dennison’s long association with The Netherlands has been recognised with the naming of a new tulip.   During a recent visit to the Corporation’s facility in Hazerswoude, Avery Dennison's Chairman, President and CEO Dean A Scarborough received the gift of the newly-bred tulip, which he named ‘Avery Dennison’, from the Hazerswoude plant leadership team.   An official registration certificate signed by the plant’s breeder confirms its name, under which it will now be available commercially.

Mr Scarborough was delighted with the gift – a red tulip that echoes the colour of the Corporation’s logo – and he took the appropriate step of baptising it with water.

He comments, "This is a wonderful way to celebrate the Corporation’s close relationship with The Netherlands.   We opened our first factory in Leiden as long ago as in 1955, invested heavily in its expansion and made Leiden our International Headquarters in 1962, and then, in 1968, added a second Dutch plant, here, in Hazerswoude.   Both Leiden and Hazerswoude remain the lynchpins of our European operations, and I am really proud that our company name will now be formally associated with a beautiful, bright red tulip as well as with self-adhesive materials!"

For more information on Avery Dennison, please visit www.averydennison.com

[photo shows Hazerswoude team with the 'Avery Dennison' tulip]

Perfect Colours, a London-based value added reseller of large format digital printing solutions, has announced a new finance option for print service providers (PSPs) wishing to upgrade to new HP Designjet printers. 

The new ‘deferred payment plan’ offers PSPs the option of deferring payment for new HP Designjet printers for 6 months from the date of delivery and installation.  The offer covers all HP Designjet large format printers - including the most recent Latex models - and is available with immediate effect.  

Jason Burroughs, managing director of Perfect Colours, comments, “We have introduced this offer to enable customers looking to invest in wide format solutions the chance to build some business and revenue from the Designjet machine before having to actually pay for it.  We think this will greatly benefit our customers in this challenging business climate.”

Perfect Colours has been ratified as an official HP-authorised service partner for DesignJet printers and is able to service and support all HP DesignJet printers under the HP warranty.

As with all financial arrangements, the 6-months deferred payment option from Perfect Colours is subject to standard terms and conditions.

For businesses looking to learn more about HP’s latex printers, Perfect Colours has announced it will be hosting two Open Days – one in Nottingham on 16th February and one in London later this month.   For more information, please contact Perfect Colours via email info@perfectcolours.com or call 0845 680 9000.

For more information on Perfect Colours, please visit www.perfectcolours.com

John E Wright Ltd has acquired the Nottingham branch of Service Point to enhance the supply of its print, goods and services to the Architectural, Engineering & Construction (AEC) market in the Nottingham and Derby region.  The Nottingham branch of Service Point will be merged into the existing John E Wright operation with the retention of all relevant staff and equipment.

Tony Barnett, Managing Director of John E Wright, comments, “This is a great opportunity to improve our service levels to the AEC market in the East Midlands. John E Wright has substantial investment in printing equipment, machinery and professional finishing solutions and a wide range of other services including engineering support, colour brochure printing, high-end bid set printing and a wide range of graphic printing to add to the traditional document printing, management and archiving services already offered by Service Point.  We also have more branches in the region to give a faster, local service at a time when turnaround times are becoming increasingly important.”

John O’Regan, Regional Business Director for Service Point, adds, “We have chosen John E Wright as our business partner because the company is a long established and highly respected company in the region, and as such we are confident they will act as a valued partner moving forward.”

For further information, please email tony.barnett@johnewright.com or andrew.yates@johnewright.com

[photo shows John O’Regan, Regional Business Director for Service Point (left) sealing the deal with Tony Barnett, Managing Director of John E Wright (right)]

PrintMAX has been confirmed as the most successful Roland Authorised Dealer for the second year running, based on the number of inks, printers and cutters sold by printMAX to Roland's customer base.

“PrintMAX is our number one selling dealer in the UK for the second year running,” says Roland DG technical director Brett Newman. “They have continued to support the Roland brand in the market, but more importantly they have continued to support their customers, and this achievement is testament to how their customers come back to printMAX and, in turn, back to Roland year upon year.”

Working closely with Roland has enabled printMAX to focus on the needs of its customers by delivering great quality products and assistance within the Roland range.

The summer of 2011 saw the introduction of the Roland VersaUV LEJ-640. Before the autumn had arrived printMAX had secured the first sale of this printer in the world. Following this, printMAX sold more LEJ-640’s in the UK than any other Roland dealer. The continued assistance provided by the sales staff along with the training and advice offered in association with Roland resulted in printMAX maintaining high sales figures during a potentially tough year.

Managing Director of printMAX, Michael Bolton, comments, “We're thrilled to have been announced as the most successful Authorised Dealer once again. All of us at printMAX are very proud of the hard work put in over the last 12 months to ensure we were able to help new customers realise the potential that the Roland product range could help them achieve within their print business. But even more importantly to continue to support the loyal customer base we already have.”

Regarding what the future holds for the printMAX and Roland partnership, Michael Bolton added, “I am confident that over the next year we can do what it takes to be named Roland’s most successful dealer again in 2012 and my thanks go to all our customers, both old and new, for supporting the business and allowing us to continue achieving these great results.”

For more information, please visit www.printMAX.co.uk

Calling it the “ultimate” franchise partnership match, FastSigns International Inc. has announced a deal with a trio of prestigious business leaders in Puerto Rico to bring five locations to the island in the next five years.

Jose Corujo, Teresa Caballero and Juan Rivera - all business savvy entrepreneurs with impressive resumes offering extensive experience in marketing, accounting and operations - plan to open Puerto Rico’s first FastSigns centre this spring in Guaynabo, just south of the capital city San Juan. Having a strong client base on the island already with a company that specialises in POP (point-of-purchase) marketing, the trio will convert their existing business into FastSigns to benefit from brand recognition, operational support and expanded services for existing and new customers.

“Partnering with FastSigns will allow us to expand our digital offerings and solve all of our clients’ visual communication needs with a more consultative approach and comprehensive services,” said Corujo, a CPA who has worked with one of the ‘Big 4’ accounting firms. “With the FastSigns model, we can expand our client base with a storefront presence and capitalise on the trend of businesses investing increasingly more money into POP and less on traditional media advertising.”

Before founding a marketing and communications firm with Caballero in 2001, Corujo spent eight years in public accounting, worked for the government of Puerto Rico and served as executive director of the Puerto Rico Tourism Company. In addition, Corujo serves on the Board of Directors of the Sales & Marketing Executives International and is a former president of the Sales and Marketing Executive Association in Puerto Rico.

Caballero has more than 25 years of experience in the industry as a renowned expert in developing and implementing marketing and PR strategies, working with such prestigious brands as Kellogg's, Pillsbury and Budweiser. Adding to the strength of the partnership is Rivera, who operated his own business that provided merchandising and sales services to clients for more than 12 years.

Mark Jameson, Senior Vice President of Franchise Support & Development at FastSigns, said the experience and business acumen of the new franchise partners in Puerto Rico are an ideal match for FastSigns’ conversion strategy. The company has successfully converted multiple existing independent sign shops and marketing businesses into FastSigns centres over the past few years, creating a mutually beneficial arrangement for both parties.

“With their current relationships on the island, coupled with their extensive skill sets, Jose, Teresa and Juan will be a tremendous asset to FastSigns to help the brand successfully grow and develop in Puerto Rico,” Jameson said. “This franchise agreement provides momentum for FastSigns as we continue to expand internationally.”

For more information, please visit www.fastsigns.com

Spandex, the provider of leading brands for graphics solutions, has assembled a board of directors to support the established management team. This follows the acquisition of Spandex by Gilde Buy Out Partners and Spandex management from former owner Gerber Scientific, Inc. in August 2011.

The new board consists of directors Wim Noorlander (Chairman) and John Summerside, Spandex CEO Rodney W Larson and two representatives of Gilde Buy Out Partners.

Wim Noorlander, Chairman of the board, previously held the position of CEO at Stokvis Tape Group BV, a leading independent adhesive tapes specialist. He is a member of the supervisory board of Den Braven Sealants BV, and is active in other businesses through his own investment company.

John Summerside is a recognised figure in the sign and display sector, having served in various senior roles with Robert Horne Group, where he launched the company’s adhesive and display products business in 1986. He subsequently held director level positions with Buhrmann and PaperlinX, from which he retired in 2007. Since then, John has served several companies in a consultative capacity. He is a former president of the UK’s Digital and Screen Printers’ Association, from which he holds a gold medal of honour, and a director of the European Pressure Sensitive Manufacturers’ Association.

Rod Larson was appointed Senior Vice President of Gerber Scientific Inc. and President of Spandex Ltd., in July 2007. Prior to this, he was President of Gerber Coburn, a position he held since March 2006.  He began his career with engineering roles at Dow Chemical and Rogers Corporation and spent 11 years with FMC Corporation where he held various management roles. Rod holds an MBA from Stanford University.
The newly-established Board will work closely with the long-serving Spandex senior management team, which remains responsible for strategic and operational execution. This team includes eleven highly experienced senior managers:

• Rodney Larson - CEO
• Axel Terlinden-Ruhl – CFO
• Guido Moresi – Group Vice President
• Rob Jackson – Group Vice President
• Alex McClelland - Vice President, Asia Pacific
• Roland Keller – Executive Director, Aftermarket Product Management
• Leon Watson – Director, Sales & Marketing - Hardware
• Ulf Schrader  – Executive Director, Supply Chain
• Jean Michel Mathieu – Director, IT and CIO
• Jim Rich – Director, Pricing
• Martine Casteels – Director, Marketing Communications

Board chairman, Wim Noorlander comments, ”Between them, this committed and talented senior management team offers more than 150 combined years of experience in the wide-format printing, signage and graphics markets. They have all the necessary skills to take Spandex´ business for-ward, while we as board directors will contribute our advice, guidance, ideas and external perspec-tives to support and accelerate their global growth plans.”

Board director John Summerside adds, “The senior management team’s business expertise covers marketing, sales, product management, customer support and operations. Their market knowledge embraces all aspects of print and finishing equipment, materials, inks, software and complete work-flow solutions. Spandex´ profound understanding of the issues and opportunities its customers face in today’s challenging and competitive market, makes it a knowledgeable and trusted partner, easy to do business with.”

Spandex CEO Rodney Larson comments, “We’re energised and motivated to be working with the guidance of the new board to realise our ambitions for Spandex as a private company. With Gilde’s financial backing we feel confident to explore a range of exciting ideas for future business develop-ments such as geographical growth, the expansion of our product portfolio and investigating new complementary market segments.  Our directors also have vast experience in making successful acquisitions.  We are committed to offer Spandex customers the widest range of innovative products from the leading brands, with best-in-class stock availability, delivery options, service and support. All backed by our unrivalled depth of industry expertise.”

For more information, please visit www.spandex.com