Blue Star Group, a division of the ASX listed IVE Group, has continued its acquisition trail with a takeover of Victorian based Fineline Printing, expected to be finalised on April 29. Blue Star Print Victoria general manager Brad Hoffmann will stay on at the helm of the merged business, with Fineline owner Neil Collyer expected to take up a senior role. Established in 1980, Fineline has made a name for itself as being one of Victoria’s top players in print communications. Matt Aitken, chief executive at Blue Star told Australian Printer the takeover was part of its business strategy.
Acquisition: Blue Star to takeover Fineline
“We had been looking to acquire but it was about finding a business that was the right fit, right for the vendors, staff and customers and importantly, it needed to be a good fit for both companies,” Aitken says. “From our perspective it is quite simply a good business, we thought its customers and staff combined with our service offerings was the ideal fit for our business.” Fineline is expected to move into Blue Star’s print facilities in Clayton, Victoria with warehousing services to operate from Blue Star Connect’s logistics site in Keysborough. However, Aitken could not confirm if all Fineline staff would come on board once the acquisition is finalised. He says, “The majority of staff will relocate to our site in Clayton as will some of the equipment. The equipment was not part of the deal so it is up to the owner Neil to decide what is happening with the rest of it.” Fineline currently possesses a gamut of production equipment including sheet-fed and digital. It also offers services in design, commercial printing, wide format, print management and warehousing. Aitken could not reveal Blue Star’s future acquisition plans but says this, “I think given our track record we have been a company that continues to make acquisitions at the right time. We are always looking for opportunities to develop our business, so it is always part of our strategy.”
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