Bertelsmann exits gravure with final Prinovis plant closure (printweek.com)

Q3 2023 • Revenue of $1.65 billion, down 5.7 percent, or 7.4 percent in constant currency. • GAAP net income of $49 million, or $0.28 per share, up $432 million or $2.76 per share, yearover-year, respectively. • Operating cash flow of $124 million, up $132 million year-over-year. • Free cash flow of $112 million, up $130 million year-over-year. • Announces Reinvention, expected to deliver improvement in adjusted operating income of at least $300 million by 2026.

As a high-volume direct mail producer, Johnson & Quin, which was founded in 1876 (making it the oldest company among this group of innovators), made a profound switch to high-speed inkjet printing in 2019. That change — to three Screen color inkjet systems — reports VP and Principal Andrew Henkel, was precipitated by the fact the company’s clients had accepted color digital output and were happy with the results. “It felt like a leap of faith,” says Bob Arkema, the company’s executive VP, “but it seemed like an inevitability. We could take advantage of being early inkjet adopters, or wait until we were forced to [invest]. It felt riskier not to do it.” To keep up with its three high-speed inkjet lines, Johnson & Quin has also been investing heavily, primarily in inserting systems. “Johnson & Quin, is using continuous-feed inkjet mainly for mid-level-priced, good clients, such as cell phone providers, etc.,” points out Marco Boer, VP of IT Strategies. “They are using software to optimize postal discounts and delivery response to the most efficient levels possible, often pre-sorting at the print level to get the highest postage discounts.” The company’s 100% color inkjet approach makes them stand out in the direct mail space.

Supremex Inc., a leading North American manufacturer and marketer of envelopes and a growing provider of paper-based packaging solutions, announced the acquisition of the shares of Impression Paragraph Inc., an integrated provider of paper-based packaging, print and point of sale products for a broad range of commercial markets. The transaction was concluded for a total consideration of approximately $26.6 million, on a cash-free and debt-free basis, subject to customary adjustments, financed through the Company’s existing credit facility. Founded more than 35 years ago, Paragraph operates two facilities located in Ville-Saint-Laurent and Saint-Hyacinthe, Québec. Its offering consists primarily of folding carton packaging and point-of-sale displays for the cosmetic, pharmaceutical, food, confectionary and retail sectors. It also provides an array of commercial, digital and wide-format printing. For the 12-month period ended October 31, 2022, Paragraph generated sales of approximately $38.6 million.