Printing firm is latest casualty

A FAMILY-RUN Plymouth printing business has closed after 42 years of trading, having fallen victim to the economic fall-out from the coronavirus pandemic.

Stonehouse-based Blackfriars Contracts has been forced into liquidation after seeing work volumes fall “significantly” during the autumn of 2020.

As recently as July this year, it was investing in new equipment and hiring staff, after being inundated with orders. It had even acquired another building in Stonehouse to expand into, but a sudden turnaround in the economic situation led to the company having to bring in insolvency experts and stage a meeting with creditors in early December.

Blackfriars Contracts specialised in digital printing for businesses and public organisations throughout the UK, including Government and security work.

While it had initially seen an increase in work during the early stages of the pandemic, new orders declined since October to the point where the firm became unsustainable.

However, its Netprinter on-demand digital printing service remained a success and has been sold on to another company, which will keep four Blackfriars workers in a job.

Simon Hicks, a director of Plymouth-based insolvency and business recovery firm Brailey Hicks, said: “Sadly, another local business has been a victim in the shadow of Covid. Our discussions with the director of the company have indicated the company did all it could to cope with the pressures of the past nine months. However, sadly it has not been able to survive.”

Blackfriars, seen as something of a “hidden treasure” within the city’s business world for many years, had been operating since 1978, and was still run by the founding King family, most recently helmed by husband and wife Simon and Joanna King.

It had been set up by Simon and his father and was initially based at the Barbican. At one time the family owned the building which is now the Gog and Magog public house, which they had developed into a hotel, flats, shops and a restaurant. Blackfriars was born there, but as it grew it had four other locations on the Barbican before moving to Stonehouse and settling in a 9,000sq ft building in 2006.

In 2020, Netprinter Signs was set up to produce top-quality signage on a variety of materials including wood and aluminium.

The new owner of Netprinter will continue to provide these services to past and future customers and has plans to grow this former part of the Blackfriars business.