January 29, 2002
CCL acquires UK label producer
TORONTO— CCL Industries Inc. announced last Friday that it will buy British-owned pressure-senstive label printer Jarvis Porter Group PLC for about $16 million. The transaction gives CCL control of four European-based Jarvis plants, which will be merged into CCL Label International's operations. "Jarvis Porter has been one of the pre-eminent pressure-sensitive label companies in Western Europe for many years, with an excellent quality and service reputation," says CCL Label president Geoffrey Martin. Revenues generated from these four sites totalled about $50 million in 2000. The deal is expected to close on Feb.1.

St.Joseph nearing IPO?
CONCORD, Ont.— St. Joseph Corp. may be inching closer to its first public stock offering according to president Tony Gagliano. He has expressed interest in issuing a public offering once revenues climb past $500 million. St. Joseph is the largest privately held printing company in Canada, and had revenues of $282 million in 2000. The potential acquisition of publisher Key Media would provide about a $40 million boost to annual revenues, but Gagliano remains uncertain when a decision will be made regarding the sale. "We have no indication as to where the process is, in regards to a time frame," he says. St. Joseph's chief competition for Key Media is rumoured to be Transcontinental.

January 25, 2002
Imaginex receives capital infusion, shuffles management
MISSISSAUGA, Ont.— Imaginex Inc. announced this week that it has secured in excess of $1 million in new financing and has recast its upper management team. The cash infusion came primarily from senior management who are also shareholders. The privately held graphic design, packaging and prepress firm has also appointed new executives, including COO Richard Parkinson and v.p of operations, Neil Davidson. Growth is a priority for the new team according to president Serge Trajkovich, who says, "we firmly believe the next 6-12 months will be a period of significant business development and expansion." Imaginex has annual sales of about $20 million.

Printers in hot pursuit of Key Media
TORONTO— Industry sources say a new owner for Key Media could be revealed within days, PrintCan has learned. Key has not indicated which candidate, Transcontinental Group or St. Joseph Corp., is the front-runner, but Concord, Ont.-based St. Joseph has confirmed strong interest in Key's group of magazines, and has made an undisclosed offer. Transcontinental has not officially confirmed it has made an offer. However, Transcontinental's current magazine assets which include TV Guide and Canadian Living are rumoured to be bolstering the company's chances.

January 22, 2002
Barcam establishes publishing division
MISSISSAUGA, Ont.— Commercial printer Barcam Group has set up a publishing division to produce Canadian Content Reference Books aimed at high school students. The new division, Acer Publishing Inc., will produce the first set of six books by the end of the year. The texts, which will also be available in public libraries, are designed to serve as a support tool for curriculums taught across Canada. Acer will produce successive sets over the next two to three years, according to Barcam president Graham Ford. Subjects to be covered in the first set will include Geography, Environment and Ecozone, with more topics coming next year. Barcam will also print and distribute the books, Ford says.

Shawson disappears
MISSISSAUGA, Ont.— Shawson Printing has vacated its suburban-Toronto location, PrintCan has learned. Calls placed to the printer were not answered, but according to its landlord, Toronto-based Morguard Investments, Shawson abandoned the premises and has an unpaid tax bill.

January 18, 2002
St. Joseph partners with Canon
CONCORD, Ont.—St. Joseph Corp. has agreed to a multi-year marketing agreement with Canon Imaging Systems Group to provide facility management and document outsourcing in Canada for Canon's customers. As a part of the deal, St. Joseph Digital Solutions will also gain access to Canon's digital technology to help serve its own document outsourcing and high-end production markets. Both companies are eager to claim a bigger piece of the estimated US$27.8 billion document outsourcing market. "We are very happy and proud to enter into a strategic alliance with them to provide value-added solutions to customers of both organizations," says Tamotsu (Ted) Nakamura, president and CEO, Canon Canada Inc. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Moore stock surges as acquisitions continue
TORONTO and STAMFORD, Conn.— After taking the helm of a company that was trading at $6 per share and posted a US$66 million dollar loss, Robert Burton is delivering on his promises to shareholders that Moore Corp. would return to profitability. The CEO of the forms and labels printer has presided over a company that shed 2,700 jobs in 2001 and has seen its stock price rise to $16.76 on the Toronto Stock Exchange as of yesterday. Moore is also buying again. It bought the assets of IBM Canada's document outsourcing division earlier this month, and completed a deal to buy U.S.-based commercial printer, Nielsen Co. this week. Nielsen had revenues of US$90 million in 2001, and employs 730 people at three plants.

January 15, 2002
St. Joseph makes bid for Key Media
CONCORD, Ont.— St. Joseph Corp. announced late Friday afternoon it has made an offer to acquire Key Media Inc., owner of Toronto Life, Fashion and Quill & Quire. Other bidders rumoured to be interested in Key Media include Transcontinental Group. St. Joseph is interested in the magazine publisher because it would fit well with its existing publisher, MultiVision and its printing businesses. A decision regarding the sale of Key Media should be finalized in a couple of weeks, according to St. Joseph. Key Media has annual revenues of about $40 million.

Torstar to print National Post
TORONTO— Torstar Corp. and CanWest Global Communications announced yesterday that they have agreed to a five-year contract that will move all printing of the southern Ontario edition of the National Post to Torstar's plant in Vaughan, Ont. The deal is expected to take effect this month. The National Post's current printing requirements are split between Torstar's Hamilton Spectator and Sun Media's downtown Toronto Sun plant. The Vaughan plant has had excess capacity since Torstar outsourced the print contract for its commuter tabloid Metro last year. "Printing the Post at Vaughan will be a seamless addition to our production schedule," says Bob Steacy, vice-president of finance at Torstar. Financial terms for the deal were not disclosed.
January 11, 2002
Rogers talking to Quebecor about print contract extension
TORONTO— PrintCan has learned through industry sources that Rogers Publishing division has begun talking to Quebecor World regarding Rogers' magazine printing contracts. Although current pacts will not expire for at least another two years, sources say talks have recently begun. Rogers spokesperson Immee Chee Wah wouldn't confirm or deny any talks with Quebecor regarding the contacts, saying that, "generally we don't comment on any agreements we have with suppliers, but we are always in regular dialogue with people we do business with." Quebecor would not confirm any negotiations with Rogers. Look for updates as new information becomes available.

Print search engine prepares for launch
STONEY CREEK, Ont.— On April 1 canadian-printers.ca, a dedicated search engine for the Canadian printing industry will open to the public, along with its companion site for the U.S. industry, american-printer.com. In order to generate listings, a marketing campaign has been finalized. Approximately 22,000 desktop calendars promoting the sites will be sent out with the February issues of Graphic Monthly and Print Action. An ad has also started running on PrintCan. Hans Dewitt, owner of Stoney Creek, Ont.-based shop dWK Designed with Care decided to create the search engines himself in order to provide a more direct link between print buyers and sellers. "There is nothing like this out there that is segregated and segmented to a point where you're searching through an industry I'm in. I want to be found," he says.

January 08, 2002
Quebecor makes cuts at MIL
MONTREAL— PrintCan has learned through an industry source that Quebecor World laid off staff at its Toronto-based MIL division in mid-December. Quebecor would not confirm or comment on the layoffs, which were rumoured to involve 20 to 30 employees. MIL houses both sheetfed and half-web printing capabilites, catering to financial printing and direct mail clients.

Creo sinks more money into printCafe
VANCOUVER— Creo Products Inc. increased its stake in software developer printCafe with a US$23.6 million investment. The transaction pushes Creo's voting interest in printCafe to 40% and gives it a second seat on printCafe's board of directors. "By integrating content production workflows from Creo with print management systems from printCafe, our customers will be able to take advantage of a web-enabled, fully integrated production environment," says Creo president Amos Michelson. Creo says Michelson will also stay on as chair of printCafe's board.

January 04, 2002
General Business Forms co-founder dies
EDMONTON— PrintCan has learned E.J. (Ted) Appleby, co-founder of General Business Forms (GBF), passed away on Dec. 30 after a short, undisclosed illness. Appleby had a lengthy career in sales and management with Moore Corp.'s Western Canadian operations, before starting GBF in the mid-1970s. He grew GBF for several years as its president, before selling it to Brampton, Ont.-based Data Business Forms in 1981, and retiring in Baptiste Lake, Alberta. Ted is survived by his wife Carol and daughters Wendy and Lauri.

Moore does a little post-holiday shopping
TORONTO and STAMFORD, Conn.— After a year in which it shed US$100 million in operational costs and fired 2,700 employees, forms and label giant Moore Corp. is starting to buy again. In a deal announced on Wednesday, Moore acquired the assets of IBM Canada's Document Management Services (DMS) division, a provider of outsourced printing and mail services for corporate clients. "DMS is a profitable, well-managed business that has a tremendous opportunity to accelerate its growth as a part of Moore," says president Robert Burton. DMS had revenues of about US$23 million in 2001. Financial terms for the sale were not disclosed.

January 02, 2002
Sept. 11 costing print industry US$6.3 billion
WASHINGTON— The Printing Industries of America's leading economist estimates that the printing industry will lose about $US 6.3 billion in sales from the third quarter of 2001 through the end of 2002 as a result of the Sept.11 terrorists attacks. PIA chief economist Dr. Ron Davis told attendees at the Print Outlook '02 conference last month that the association's revised sales projections predict a US$1.5 billion decrease per quarter compared to pre-Sept.11 figures. Davis also said that add-on services are accounting for more revenue growth in the sector than traditional print.