After several months of negotiations, the Starleaton group has announced the acquisition of the widely respected print supplies business DES in Australia and New Zealand.
Integration of DES and Starleaton Digital Solutions (SDS) is set to take place over the next 6 months with Ian Clare, managing director of DES staying on with the business to help with the process.
DES is a well recognised supplier across a broad spectrum of print sectors. Operating out of its Sydney head office in Rhodes, DES has reach across Australia with offices and warehousing in Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Newcastle, Canberra and New
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Zealand. Founded in 1961 DES built a strong business in the CAD/GIS sector specialising in document management systems. Moving into the graphic arts sector, they became a leader in colour management solutions working closely with other industry heavies such as EFI, CGS, and Mitsubishi. Further growth into the photo/fine art and the sign and display sectors has meant DES has one of the broadest product portfolios of any supplier in the ANZ market. A strong equipment offering including Epson, Seiko and EFI alongside their colour management products including X-rite allows them to partner with many of the high volume producers who wish to achieve high quality output.
“Having spent the past few decades building the DES brand to what it is today, we were keen to see our efforts continue to be built on in the years to come” comments Ian Clare, Managing Director for DES “In that regard Starleaton clearly share many of our philosophies that have driven our business to where it is today– a focus on leading brands and high quality products, and strong and reliable customer service.”
The Starleaton business, founded in the late 70’s by Peter Eaton has expanded over the decades through various acquisitions and the set up of it’s SDS division in 2000. Operating out of Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane, SDS is home to exclusive brands such as Neschen, SEAL and Contra Vision and as recently announced adding AGFA to it’s stable. In more recent times SDS has been on a clear path to differentiate themselves from the rest of the competition. Focusing on an extensive range of targeted application based products, they have become the “go-to” for specialised materials for its many sign and display customers. The acquisition of the DES business further strengthens this product portfolio on offer to the combined sets of customers.
“Over the past few years we have seen an enormous amount of compression in the Australian market in both the supply and print production corners of the industry” adds Ben Eaton CEO of the Starleaton group. “I have had great respect for DES over the years as I have watched the business grow both organically and through acquisitions of its own. The opportunity to bring two great brands under one roof furthers our plans to grow whilst staying true to our message of offering a market leading portfolio of products and service. It’s not often you find two family owned businesses that share the same passion and culture. This really is an exciting next move for us.”
The joint product portfolios see the business having an even greater impact in the PSP, POS, exhibition, interior design and industrial print space. However, customer service is much more than a just an extensive range of consumables and equipment. The technical engineering team is further strengthened across the country giving the customers confidence that they will have strong product support, from both an application (print quality) and break fix perspective.
Over the coming months it will be business “better than usual” says Eaton with customers on both sides of the fence able to to expect an increased level of service and access to the reciprocal product groups. It will take some months to finalise the integration of stock, MIS systems, premises and staff however there is a clear focus on ensuring the customer experience is as uninterrupted as possible. “The business has always had a focus on keeping deep stock levels around the country. This move only furthers that commitment across all our warehouse locations.”
Both DES and SDS have solid teams across Australia and New Zealand and the forging of these two teams offers the market access to an exceptional pool of industry professionals. The new joint sales force will be focused on helping customers to deliver the most creative solutions to their customers. The benefits of dealing with the latest form of the business are obvious; great customer service and support, reliable product delivery and a sophisticated back office.
“Business is all about people and relationships. I have been fortunate to grow up as part of the Starleaton business, and am proud to be at the forefront of this next phase of our growth.”
Starleaton Digital Solutions
www.starleaton.com.au
