Woodberry Packaging has acquired Precision Card Services bringing a third card provider to a group that has already acquired Incodia this year.
The sale of PCS was triggered by the desire of founder Tim Holt to step back from the business he had started with Rob Nicholls in 1983. Nicholls sold his share in the Macclesfield business in 2021 to Holt. PCS has become a leading provider of short run and membership, loyalty, gift and other specialist cards. It runs a KBA Genius UV litho press and an HP Indigo digital machine.
The company joins an expanding operation that began in 2019 when Patrick Doran and Mark Keating started Woodberry Packaging with the acquisition of Dublin printer Colorman. It has multiple B1 presses for cartons and commercial as well as feeding its identity card operation.
Doran has owned Americk Packaging, a corrugated to labels group before its sale to Saica in 2016. His vehicle has been Woodberry Capital with investments in real estate before Doran decided on a return to print and packaging. In February the group added Incodia as a producer of plastic cards using a Speedmaster CX102-8+L UV in Colchester. Incodia also has a plant for letter production at Skelmersdale.
PCS has welcomed the acquisition, seeing it as a stepping stone to a stronger future. The company employs 34 and generates sales of £5.8 million with capacity to produce 160 million cards a year. “It’s exciting news for us. It’s good to be part of a bigger group that has a history of investment, and the same kind of attitude to quality service and long term outlook of its employees,” says a spokesman. “Tim was reaching the point where he needed an exit strategy. This is a strong complementary fit.”
Holt says: “It is clear to me that the team at Woodberry Capital completely understand the strengths of PCS and the culture and ethos that has made it into what it is today. With their investment and knowledge, I have no doubt that PCS will thrive in the future.”
Woodberry is being helped by Mark Kerridge as chairman of the emerging group. He ran Benson Box prior to its acquisition by GPI and then helped steer Firstan Packaging ahead of its acquisition by AR Packaging.
There is a strong future for all styles of cards, with the PCS range including recyclable plastic and recoiled materials. Even when digital apps have become commonplace for retailers, loyalty cards remain popular. Morrisons, for example, removed its loyalty card scheme and replaced it with an app, but in recent months its has relaunched the scheme as the Morrison More card.
