Since being born in a Brisbane garage in 1961, the 52 years have been anything but slow for Tennyson Group. It has seen expansion, diversification, relocations, acquisitions and technology upgrades. More recently, the family-owned firm has positioned itself as an environmental leader. Today’s business looks very different to the company founded by Ranald Simpson.
[Photos: Behind the scenes]
Milestones include Sustainable Green Print level two in 2010 and level three in 2012. The company won the 2012 Logan Ecobiz Award and is looking at implementing ISO 14001, says Ranald’s son, managing director Mitchell Simpson.
He says the environmental push has been driven by two financial imperatives: reducing costs and qualifying for government tenders. But it was also something demanded by the younger staff, he adds. It speaks volumes about new attitudes, and also gives an insight into how Tennyson has remained relevant over the years by embracing change.
Going green
The sustainability drive has been led by Mitchell’s daughter, 24-year-old environmental coordinator Ali Simpson. She says the task has been made easier by the commitment of the staff. They began with simple things like turning off computers at the power socket overnight. That was followed by more complicated projects such as creating a comprehensive recycling scheme, reducing chemical use and installing more efficient air-conditioning. Everything going in and out of the business started being measured, and systems were put in place so that sustainability went from being a series of sporadic measures to a coherent program. The result was that Tennyson went from filling two skips per week to less than one.
The only problem is that the greener Tennyson becomes, the harder it is to keep making improvements. Ali says future gains will come from making the existing systems more efficient. Eternal vigilance is also important. She says the green message needs to be regularly repeated – otherwise, people can become complacent or succumb to the temptation of putting sustainability in the too-hard basket during peak production periods.
Simple beginnings
Tennyson is proud of the way it has moved with the times. A video on the company’s website shows how it has grown ‘from simple beginnings’ with original letterpress machines and then early typesetting computers into a ‘sophisticated technical centre’ operating from an ‘industry-leading complex’. There have been many shifts along the way – including the sad passing of Ranald in August this year, 52 years after he founded the company.
Mitchell says of his father: “He was an old-school printer – the sort who worked hard and partied even harder. He retired from the business in 2004, but took a very keen interest in it until he died.”
Ranald had been a compositor at the Courier-Mail when he decided to strike out on his own in 1961. He named his business Tennyson Printery, after the suburb in which it was based, and started with a single-colour AB Dick offset press.
The company relocated to Coopers Plains in 1969 and then made what turned out to be a lucky move, in 1973, to Acacia Ridge. The floods of 1974 struck six months later – the old premises in Tennyson and Coopers Plains went under while the new site in Acacia Ridge remained high and dry. In 1987, the company moved to larger premises in Crestmead, where it remains.
Back then, Tennyson had about 60 staff. These days the company employs 35 people, six of whom are family members.
A family business
Mitchell joined the company in 1977 straight after finishing school. He admits he wasn’t keen on the idea, but the decision felt inevitable because he had grown up working in the business. He started on the factory floor as an apprentice compositor, progressed to being a machinist, was then promoted to vinyl production manager, then moved into a sales role and finally took over the managing director’s position from his older brother, Greg, in 2003.
Greg had joined Tennyson in 1974, but these days he works as a contractor to the company. Mitchell’s daughter, Ali, has been with Tennyson since she joined in 2000 as a schoolgirl, and has mainly worked in production. Another daughter, Chloe Geraghty, is the operations manager, while a son, Lachlan Simpson, is the quality assurance manager. Mitchell’s sister, Sue Chapman, is in administration.
Mitchell’s wife, Karen, joined the family business in 1987 after they had their first child. A former hairdresser, Karen worked her way through the ranks from trainee sales rep to sales manager, to quality assurance manager and then to general manager. She moved on in 2006 to Fireworks, a firm that did large-format digital printing; she then returned in 2008 as chief financial officer after Fireworks was sold and Tennyson acquired digital operation Shout Graphics.
A period of expansion
Tennyson had been looking to move into small-format digital when it heard that Shout had entered administration. The two companies already had a relationship: Tennyson did offset work for Shout and Shout reciprocated with digital work. Karen says Shout’s demise was sad news, but an opportunity that couldn’t be ignored. Tennyson took over Shout’s name, machinery and customer list in the deal.
It took a year before Tennyson felt the acquisition was bedded down, says Karen. “It performed very well from day one but there were a lot of challenges. We had no experience in small-format digital. We took on the staff including the former owners and then had a massive learning curve, but now we’re growing.”
Karen says the previous owners failed because they spent too much money and didn’t have proper systems in place. The solution was to make the business leaner and introduce more accountable management structures, she adds.
Tennyson Group consists of half a dozen businesses. Shout provides about 25% of revenue, and offset operation Tennyson Printery generates 50%, while the remaining 25% comes from the other four divisions. One of those is The Screenery, the large-format and digital screen printing operation that was founded in 1975, and was originally known as Poster Printing. PVC stationery arm Acro Vinyl Arts was added in 1984. Design firm Art Xtra followed in 1990. Tuff Tabs, which was founded in 1995, does index tabbing and script reinforcing, and derives almost all its income from trade work.
“Our product offering is four times what most printers can do,” says Karen. She won’t reveal the company’s turnover, but says about 10% comes from trade services, which includes digital printing, tabbing and ring-binder work. “Anything that sits outside the square comes to us. I can’t think of a printer in Queensland that hasn’t used us at some point in time.”
Digital line-up
Shout is Tennyson’s fastest-growing business. That was part of the reason why it invested more than $500,000 in a Kodak NexPress at PacPrint in May. Karen says Tennyson did a lot of research before concluding that the NexPress would produce the best quality sheets, particularly in cool greys. The machine’s extra-long sheet feeder allows it to print A4 four-up, while the fifth unit offers colour versatility.
“We’ve committed quite heavily in digital – both large-format and small-format. We wanted the best quality print we could buy but also wanted versatility. The big clincher was the after-sales service,” she says, referring to Kodak’s servicing partnership with Konica Minolta. Tennyson has three Konica devices: a Bizhub Press C8000, Bizhub Pro 1051 and Bizhub Pro 1200.
The NexPress represents a big step up in quality and will be used to attract a new clientele, Karen says. It will also be used for some new products, and will involve more complex and more personalised variable data.
Tennyson’s digital line-up also includes an HP Scitex FB500 flatbed, HP Designjet L26200 large-format printer, Roland DG SolJet Pro III XJ-740 wide-format device and a pair of two-colour Fuji Xerox machines. The factory floor also has a six-colour B2 Manroland, four-colour A3 Shinohara press and Heidelberg GTO, as well as screenprinting, tabbing, PVC welding and script reinforcing equipment.
Acting strategically
Tennyson prides itself on its customer service, turnaround times and innovation. But unlike many businesses, it’s reluctant to automatically describe these as a unique selling point. The company is currently conducting a strategic review.
“Our type of business is driven by whatever the hot spot of the day is,” says Karen. Until recently, that was mining – now the search is on for the next boom sector. The aim is to anticipate which way the market is heading and get there before other printers.
Tennyson is facing another problem: the company is running out of space. Ironically, this may help its diversification strategy. Tennyson has 5,000m² of spare real estate, which it expects to make use of in the next five years. Karen says it might be used for warehousing, which would double as a value-add and a point of difference.
Change for the future
Another reason Mitchell and Karen initiated the strategic review was because they wanted to put the business on a secure footing for the next generation. Tennyson’s first 50 years has seen plenty of change and they know that will have to continue if the company is to reach its century. That means new products, new technology, new clients and new manufacturing methods, says Karen. “Our business has changed substantially in the past five years. I believe in another five years some things will stay the same, but what drives it will change.”
Factfile
Established 1961
Total staff 35
Family staff 6
Based Crestmead, Brisbane
Divisions Tennyson Printery, Shout Graphics, The Screenery, Acro Vinyl Arts, Art Xtra and Tuff Tabs
Business Briefing
• Tennyson Group was originally known as Tennyson Printery when it opened its doors in the Brisbane suburb of Tennyson in 1961
• Founder Ranald Simpson, who passed away in August 2013, had been a compositor at the Courier-Mail when he decided to strike out on his own
• The company started with a single-colour AB Dick offset press and first operated out of a garage
• It relocated to Coopers Plains in 1969, Acacia Ridge in 1973, and then its current location of Crestmead in 1987
• Ranald’s son, Mitchell, is the managing director. He works alongside five other family members: two daughters, a son, a sister and his wife
• Tennyson prides itself on its environmental credentials. It attained Sustainable Green Print level three last year, won the 2012 Logan Ecobiz Award and is looking at implementing ISO 14001
• Tennyson invested $500,000 in a Kodak NexPress at PacPrint in May. The NexPress sits alongside an HP Scitex FB500, HP Designjet L26200, Roland DG SolJet Pro III XJ-740 and a pair of two-colour Fuji Xerox printers
• The company also has a six-colour B2 Manroland, four-colour A3 Shinohara press and Heidelberg GTO, as well as screenprinting, tabbing, PVC welding and script reinforcing equipment
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