Two Melbourne printers, Eastern Press and Print Impressions, are merging, with Eastern Press owner Frank Hilliard saying there was an opportunity to join forces with a like-minded printer.

The companies say both are successful printers in their own right with production capacity so the merger made sense on many levels.

Hilliard signed contracts with Print Impressions owner, Trevor O’Connell yesterday, stating the merger will begin February 14, and should be finalised around Easter. Print Impressions will be integrating into the Eastern Press facility.

[Related: Eastern Press stars at Vic PICAs]

One of the key factors that drove Hilliard and O’Connell to merge was that by combining businesses their respective clients could now benefit from a total end-to-end print solution without the need to outsource. The combined business will have a full range of offset and digital print, mailing services, and wide-format printing, in addition to a range of interactive and digital solutions including augmented reality and cross media.

Hilliard says all Print Impressions staff were offered positions at Eastern Press, with all staff coming across, except for a couple who decided to leave the printing industry altogether.

“The pre-press manager, planner estimator and two printers will come across, one of the other staff is coming over on a casual basis,” he says.

Regarding the equipment, Hillard says, “We have had a serious look at it. We will have surplus equipment between the two companies which we will evaluate and get rid of in a month or so.”

 “For now both companies will keep their names, and in time we will decide what to do with branding.”  

Eastern Press is a commercial printer with 30 years of experience in the printing industry. Print Impressions is a digital and offset printer working with clients since 1996.

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