Mar 4, 2008

Beswick Paper buys Premier from Antalis for £19.1m


Beswick Paper has acquired Premier Paper from Antalis to become the sixth largest paper merchant in the UK by turnover.

The £19.1m deal, which was the result of a ruling by the EU competition commission following Antalis' acquisition of Map Merchant in October last year, was announced this morning and ends months of speculation.

Beswick Paper has grown rapidly since its 2004 management buyout by Graham Griffiths, himself the former managing director of Premier Paper.

In 2005, the company made its first acquisition, buying fellow Leeds-based merchant, Monarch Paper. The company later took a 25% shareholding in Scottish independent paper merchant Meadow Paper and become an associate member of the Igepa Group.

Beswick recently relocated to a 1,300sqm warehouse and office complex to accommodate its expanding customer base. The site has been in operation since the beginning of 2008 and employs 20 staff. It will serve customers around Northamptonshire, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire.

Source: printweek

No comments: