A Plymouth printing firm is expanding, investing, and creating jobs after being inundated with work during the coronavirus pandemic.
Blackfriars Contracts Ltd is looking for skilled staff after investing in the latest printing equipment and has even rented a large part of a neighbouring building to expand into.
The business, based in a 9,000sq ft building in Stonehouse since 2006, has also started up a new company making signage, hence the need for more space.
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Blackfriars, , has been operating for 42 years, and is still run by the founding King family, today helmed by husband and wife Simon and Joanna King.
It provides digital printing for businesses and public organisations throughout the 海角视频, including Government and security work, and its Netprinter enterprise specialises in on-demand digital printing including construction plans, sewing patterns, and trade and commercial printing.
It has 18,000 customers and with 187million sewing fans around the world, seven million of them in the 海角视频, Netprinter has become the largest producer of sewing patterns in Europe.
Simon said there is now a new venture: Netprinter Signs, which will produce top-quality signage, and means the business is recruiting an experienced flat-bed printer, who is even being offered equity in the business.
That person will work with the latest technology, acquired from Canon, which can print signage on a variety of materials including wood and aluminium.
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“We will be looking for more staff,” said Simon. “Joanna and I look for people with the right attitude, there is a great opportunity for the right people, the people we need to help grow the business.”
Joanna added that Netprinter Signs will “open new markets for us”.
Blackfriars has acquired a large part of a stand-alone building across the road to expand into. It will paint both buildings in the CMYK colours used in printing: cyan, magenta, yellow and key (black).
In acquiring the new space, Blackfriars mand an offer to release a children’s play centre business, unable to open because of the pandemic restrictions, from its lease on part of the building without penalty, and helped a hairdressing business, operating on the first floor, find suitable alternative accommodation at a more affordable price.
Simon said all parties were happy with the deal and added: “We will put Netprinter Signs in there (the newly acquired space), but power it from this building.”
The new building also contains an empty gym, which Simon said will be re-equipped for free use by “staff and friends”.
“Netprinter Signs will take three quarters of the floor space,” said Simon. “When we expand we will lose the gym.”
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“There is a lot of demand and doing this work via the web means no one minds where we are,” said Simon. “We could be producing for people in Plymouth, or Bristol or Birmingham. And if they upload before noon we guarantee delivery the following day.”
Blackfriars was founded by Simon and his father and was initially based at the Barbican. At one time the family owned the building which is now the Gog and Magog public house, which they had developed into a hotel, flats, shops and a restaurant.
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Blackfriars was born there, but as it grew had four other locations on the Barbican before moving to Stonhouse.
Simon said lockdown had been an immensely busy time, with the huge demand for sewing patterns one factor, and the business did its bit to help during the height of the crisis too, producing 7,000 low-cost hospital scrubs for frontline health workers, of which 500 were given away free.
It also to help their finances recover from months in coronavirus lockdown, when they were allowed to start re-trading from July 4.
But the business had to furlough nine staff to ensure they remained safe and healthy. It meant Simon and Joanna ended up working 14 hours a day, seven days a week, for 13 weeks, to cope with the workload.
Furloughed staff are now returning but Simon stressed: “We won’t bring back those that are not comfortable to come back.”