Despite the uncertainty surrounding the wrap up of Focus Press, Mark Shergill is continuing to expand his print empire, picking up Brisbane’s PurePrint. In his fifth buy in a little over a year, Shergill will take on the business as 72-year-old owner Hans Bakker retires.

Robert Mellor, general manager with PurePrint, will continue under new owner Mark Shergill

Existing general manager Robert Mellor will continue business as usual with PurePrint’s 12 staff, operating a Komori Lithrone 440 and 526 among its equipment. PurePrint joins fellow Shergill business Dynamic Print Communication in the Queensland market; the entrepreneur says he will eventually merge the two, though this will likely require a new site and depend on how production goes. Shergill says he embarked on this latest purchase before Focus came onto the market, with a month of negotiations through a broker before sealing the deal. While PurePrint produces similar work to Dynamic’s output, he says it does have access to new client markets and has won two large ongoing contracts for civil manufacturing clients. The company specialises in producing corporate stationery, CMYK printing, digital printing, NCR and carbon books as well as promotional products at its Acacia Ridge facility in Brisbane’s outskirts. Shergill bought Dynamic out of receivership last April, at the same time acquiring Melbourne’s BPA Print Group. His newly-dubbed Focus Print Group also includes Print Warehouse, NewTone and Trodel-Docucopy, and the remains of Focus Press. Focus is still in liquidation, with debts adding up to more than $27m. Shergill says he plans to consolidate the Matraville, Wollongong and South Strathfield businesses into his existing Sydney operations at Print Warehouse. Creditors and employees are anxiously awaiting the outcome of a huge $12.9m insurance claim to know whether they will get back any of the money the collapsed print firm owes them.

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