Printing group makes fourth acquisition in as many months

Eccles-based Manchester Printers Group (MPG) has made its fourth acquisition in four months, and its biggest to date, so far.

It has bought Stockport-based Deanprint, for an undisclosed sum, taking the group to £7m in turnover.

Similar to previous deals, the printer and specialist bookbinder and finisher will keep its name and staff, with the existing management team also staying on.

MPG group operations director, David Whittles, said: “There’s basically no change. We didn’t really go in to change the business.

“Deanprint will operate the way it has always operated – we’re not going to change something that works.”

The deal has added 40 staff to the group’s headcount, roughly doubling its manpower to just above 80 staff across the North West.

Deanprint’s status as a specialist bookbinder and finisher, established in 1890, attracted Whittles to the company, as MPG seeks out a wide range of diverse businesses to complement each other.

He said: “We’re looking for diversity, more than anything. We are obviously looking for niche businesses.

“There’s not a lot of companies out there that do everything. What we’re trying to do is control that cost of manufacture – you have to be very savvy in the way that you do things.”

Deanprint joins Manchester Printers, Allenco, Jameson Print Finishers, Berkeley Business Forms, Chelma Graphics, Signature Printing and HCM Commercial Printers as part of MPG.

According to Whittles, however, MPG has not finished its run of acquisitions, which it began in 2018 with the purchase of print management firm Berkeley Business Forms, trading as North Wales Printers.

He said: “We’ve got plans. Watch this space.”

David Middleton, from Cole Associates Corporate Finance, advised Deanprint, Robert Loveday, of LLM Solicitors, provided legal advice, and Mark Briegal, of Bennett Briegal. advised MPG.

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