The global insurance giant consolidated its three-year print, mailing and warehousing services contract with the trans-Tasman print group, starting from 1 September.
Geon declined to comment on why it won the three-year deal, but one source told ProPrint that it showed Geon's plan to become "a serious player in the direct mail space".
"Geon was able to provide a seamless streamlined integrated solution with a specific focus on DM through digital innovation as the company seriously embarks on expanding its service offering in the mail arena to compete against Computershare, Salmat and SEMA," said the source.
The value of the MetLife contract is unclear, with industry insiders valuing it at anywhere from $2 million to $5 million over the three-year term.
It is known that Blue Star and Business Print Australia were also invited to tender for the contract.
One source told ProPrint that "every man and his dog" were invited to pitch and that the process dragged on for 18 months because the insurance giant was unsure what it wanted.
"It started out as a commercial print tender, but it then turned into an essential mail tender, which doesn't suit a print manager, but does suit going direct with someone who has a DM or essential mail capability," he said.
Meanwhile, Geon has continued to downsize, reducing labour costs "to ensure long-term sustainability within the business", said chief executive Graham Morgan.
Industry sources have told ProPrint that Geon's strategy of reducing overheads and implementing workflow automation are paying off on the bottom line, though details will remain unclear until the company files its annual report with ASIC in the first half of next year.
Morgan said: "We have reduced our debt significantly, reduced cost from the business across site mergers, reduced management layers, streamlined processes and now we are working with our employees on reducing the cost of labour through flexibility and open dialogue," he said in a statement.
"Our business model must flex to the economic realities, declining industry trends, reduced margin pressures and the diversification of communication channels. These contributing factors do not complement the high cost of labour within our industry."
It is unknown the exact scale of the downsizing as Geon would not comment beyond the statement sent to ProPrint, but headcount could be down by about 20% over four years. Back in 2008, Geon reported it had 1,440 staff, while according to its most recent financial report lodged with ASIC, it had 1,208 staff on 30 June 2011.
Since then, Geon revealed the closure of its Dee Why site in Sydney and Brunswick plant in Melbourne. Job cuts in Sydney were said to be minimal, while at least 35 were cut in Melbourne.
Click here to read about the ups and downs of Geon.
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