News

Point-of-sale specialist Terry Smith Group has been bought by procurement and business consultancy Realisis after it went into administration on Monday.

The West Drayton firm, which employs around 100 staff, was acquired by a new division of west London-based Realisis within hours of admin­istrators being called in.

Following the deal, Terry Smith Group has been rebranded Realisis TSG, and will be a subsidiary of Realisis Marketing Communications Group (RMCG), which was itself incorporated on Mon­day. Financial details of the deal have not been disclosed.

RMCG’s parent Realisis offers a range of consultancy and procurement services to a host of big-name companies that include major retailers. This week’s acquisition, however, is its first move into print production.

Richard Holmes, chief executive of RMCG and a veteran of publishing and print companies, including The Nuffield Press, said that the acquisition would open new possibilities for clients of both Realisis and Terry Smith Group.

He said: “It’s been our aspiration for a while to have a production base. It’s a fantastic business with a brilliant location.”

Terry Smith, the printer’s founder, will remain with the company, but will not be a director.

All the workforce of around 100 staff have been kept on, and Holmes said that he is now working with the printer’s management to establish areas for investment in kit. He said: “It’s likely to be digital; that’s where the PoS market is going.”

The sale will come as a relief to Terry Smith, which had a turnover of around £13.5m in the past year, but posted a pre-tax loss of £2.4m on turnover of £15.7m in its most recent accounts, for the 18-month period to June 2005.