---

This industry is capital intensive," states Bernard Galloway, chairman and chief executive of Buxton Press. "You shouldn’t be in business unless you can generate significant cash on the bottom line to deliver a decent return to the shareholders and to invest in new equipment."

Since taking the magazine printer private 23 years ago, Galloway has done exactly that. Currently home to one of the largest long perfector installations in the UK (totalling 58 units) and the largest XMF installation in Europe, the business is cash generative, has money in the bank, and is about to embark on an £11m investment programme that will see a new press installed every year for six years from 2012.

The fact that Buxton’s current presses are only between two and six years old and its 2008/09 accounts reveal a turnover of just under £12.5m tells you exactly how capital intensive print can be. Equally, it says something of the confidence the Buxton team has in its ability to maintain profit levels in a difficult market that it is embarking on this plan now – when the majority of companies are still playing a waiting game.

"We don’t believe things are going to get any easier – it’s going to get tougher," says managing director Kirk Galloway. "But we believe it’s the right thing for Buxton Press to invest now in order to grow the business."

According to executive director George Briddon, that growth has already started, as recent contract wins are set to boost Buxton’s turnover by around £2m. "We had to go out and win new business this year because the big three – pagination, frequency and circulation – have all been hit, which resulted in about a 20% contraction in the invoice value of our contract work."

A family business in every sense of the word, there is something almost Royston Vasey-esque about the Derbyshire town of Buxton, home to Buxton Press and all of its 109 employees. "We only employ and train local people – people that are hungry for work – because we want to build loyalty within the organisation," says Bernard. This local employee base, most of whom live within walking distance of the site, is the heartbeat of the firm, the driving force that keeps the entity that is Buxton Press in such rude health.

Significant investment
However, as both Bernard and Kirk are quick to point out, a printing company is a hungry beast, requiring constant feeding in both energy and cash. This year’s offering has been a £1.4m investment in Fuji XMF workflow, which will run in parallel with the firm’s existing Delano installation. This has given Buxton extra firepower in one of the most crucial areas of the business and also the capacity needed to process huge amounts of work in a short space of time, which is the nature of magazine printing. Despite this significant investment, the company has remained debt free, although Kirk says that it will be seeking finance for its extensive press upgrade.

"The last time we carried any substantial debt was two years ago when the last new press was paid for, but we’re not afraid of taking debt on because as long as it’s managed correctly, it can be your friend," he says."We will be looking for the best finance terms available on the basis of putting a substantial deposit down."

While Buxton Press has clearly remained confident and, more importantly, profitable in the face of the worst recession in 60 years, the management also maintains a healthy realism. Briddon describes 2010 as a "hectic whirlwind" and says he doesn’t have much hope of that improving in 2011, especially as the impact of things like the mass public sector job cuts have yet to really be felt.

 "Consumer spending will be less in real terms over the next four to five years and I believe there will be very difficult times ahead," says Bernard Galloway. "It will be survival of the fittest."

This uncertainty, according to Kirk Galloway, is yet another reason to continue to invest in greater efficiency. "Technology is improving faster and faster and if you don’t keep on top of that wave then you will fall behind and won’t be able to maintain the competitive pricing the industry demands," he says. "You’ve always got to be looking at ways to be more efficient and while you could make an argument for sweating the assets longer that’s not really going to improve your position

---

BUXTON PRESS
Chairman/chief executive Bernard Galloway
Managing director Kirk Galloway
Turnover £12.5m (2009)
Employees 109
Equipment includes Fuji CTP, seven KBA long perfectors (three with RapidKut reel sheeter), Heidelberg Stitchmaster ST 450 multi-station saddlestitcher, nine Heidelberg Stahlfolders, Wohlenberg perfect binder