Founded by Dutch immigrant John Koens in 1970, Kayell started in the photo supplies business, its staff initially using a bank of payphones outside its first offices, due to council shenanigans. Three years later it opened in Melbourne, with Brisbane following shortly afterwards.
Rapid growth occurred, with Koens putting the success down to ‘hard work, energy and loyalty’. The arrival of the digital photo era in the early 1990s presented Kayell with major challenges, company stalwart. Mike Wagner recalled selling a 3Mb camera for $40,000 in 1993.
In 1995 current managing director Rob Gatto joined the company in a sales role, and six years later following a seminal brainstorming session Kayell entered the commercial graphic arts space. Gatto – who is renowned for always getting the best table in a restaurant on account of his surname – says, “We could see there was a clear need for a professional company in the colour management and workflow area in commercial print, so set about acquiring those skills.”
Kayell has since gone on to build a successful relationship with many solutions developers, and is now a key supplier to the commercial print industry, with its proofing, colour management and workflow solutions running at printers large and small across the country. It builds solutions from various developers, including Epson, for whom it is now one its key resellers.
Craig Heckenberg and Romano Bacci from Epson were at the event, as was Garry Muratore from GMG, which is its key rip and workflow partner, as well as proofing pioneer Peter Skarpetis from Serendipity, Ian Martin from Ferag, Matthew Bauer and Penny Swinfield from monitor manufacturer Eizo, and others.
Ironically the main person Gatto and Kayell dealt with in the early days at Epson was its pro-graphics business development manager Andreas Johansson, who a year ago become Gatto’s partner at Kayell, and is now its sales director. Johansson says taking Kayell on board with Epson was ‘the best move I ever made.’ Gatto ended the evening paying tribute to his staff and suppliers, with the guests then retiring to the bar for the rest of the evening.
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