Blue Star buys STI Australia

Undeterred by the collapse of its merger deal with IPMG, Blue Star last night sealed its acquisition of STI Group’s Australian business in its second deal in a week.

The country’s number three printer continues to diversify its offerings with STI’s $20m-a-year point-of-sale and print portfolio. Along with its purchase of mailing powerhouse iGroup Australia, it has added between $60 and $70m worth of yearly turnover, edging closer to the $400m mark.

The STI point-of-sale production in Padstow will remain up and running under the leadership of current managing director Stephen De Lorenzo. Blue Star says it will enhance the facility in the coming months with new equipment and further investment.

STI’s commercial print operation, on the other hand, will be absorbed into Blue Star’s Silverwater site. The fate of those staff is currently unclear; though the business handover is scheduled for June 30.

Matt Aitken, group general manager of Blue Star, says the acquisition will attract savings for the company, which previously outsourced its POS work.

He says, “It’s an extension of the strategy we started when we began large format last year and we want to become stronger in that area.

“We previously outsourced millions of dollars in point-of-sale print jobs every year that we will now be able to do ourselves, so it’s a good fit that will bring further value to our customers.”

De Lorenzo says STI originally approached Blue Star about partnering in POS work, but as talks developed the company made an offer to buy the Australia business.

“The deal is good for STI because it no longer has the expense of running a production company in Australia but can still give its global clients access to the Australian market,” he says.

The two are planning a global partnership to share information and offer point-of-sale solutions to the international market, with Blue Star sourcing Australian work for STI Group’s global clients.

 

GO TO MORE AUSTRALIA NEWS