Martin and Carl are making a big Impression in business
12:57pm Thursday 2nd February 2012 in Business News
INSTALLATION Dylan Jones, from printing press makers Oce, left, with Carl Webster and Martin Lyons, of Impression, and the new Arizona printer
A CREATIVE services, marketing and exhibition business has installed a new machine which can print on to doors, carpet, wood, leather, acrylic and glass as part of its expansion.
Impression, based at the Evans Business Centre in Manchester Road, Bolton, is investing in equipment, premises and staff to expand.
The firm was formed in 2009 and offers printing, design and marketing services.
These include exhibition stands and point-of-sale material, branding, personalised brochures and mail, displays, signs, banners and flags.
The firm was founded by Martin Lyons and Carl Webster, who had worked together for 20 years and live in Bolton. The firm’s turnover doubled over two years and it has expanded from one to two industrial units at the Evans centre.
The business has local, national and international clients in sectors including museums, sports, leisure, engineering, furniture, retail, education and local government.
Co-director Mr Webster, aged 38, said: “The past 12 months have been difficult for a lot of businesses but it’s important for us to invest in leading edge technology and develop our services or we risk losing clients. Our new flat bed printer can work with rigid or flexible materials and offers many more opportunities.”
The Oce Arizona flat bed printer has just been installed and is the first of its kind in Bolton, they said.
It can also print on recycled materials, which is a growing market.
Customers include firms such as Bolton’s Saxon Leather and international fashion brand Henri Lloyd.
Mr Lyons, aged 42, said: “We are also trying to forge links with other firms to help with their sales and marketing. A lot of them perhaps lack in-house resources to generate awareness, so we aim to help with that by offering a ‘one-stop shop’. We have personalised marketing systems and can produce direct mail print-runs with variable data.”
The firm also works on exhibition and trade shows, and will let companies use its stands for free when buying display materials.
Impression has carried out recent projects for the University of Bolton, Bolton Council, the Bolton One leisure centre, Thornleigh Salesian College and Bolton Museum, where it helped in production of the Nat Lofthouse exhibition.
Other work includes surfboard stickers and graphics for surf clothing and equipment shops, and flags and graphics for car showrooms
